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CONQUEST 


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AUTHpR   OF 


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PARADISE,"  ''THE  ROMANCE  Of  AN  ALTER  E60,'*  ETC. 


REPRINTED    FROM 

LIPPINCOTT'S  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
J.%.  LIPPINCOTT  COMPANY, 

1890. 


Dream  of  Conquest 


%lk(>^.4.^ 


LLOYD  ,  BRYCE, 

AUTHOR   OF   "PARADISE,"    "THE   ROMANCE   OF   AN   ALTER   EGO,"    ETC. 


>     o 


PHILADELPHIA: 

J.  B.  LIPPINCOTT  COMPANY. 


C  I  f^^^) 


t'  'f  ^ 


Copyright,  1889,  by  J.  B.  Lippincott  Company. 


•  ,••••  •  • 

►  •       •    •  »  •  • 

*     ••    •  «  •    • 

'     •       •    •  •  • «  • 


DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 


CHAPTER  I. 


WANG-CHI-POO  sat  in  his  bamboo  chair,  discontentedly  twisting 
the  end  of  his  queue.  The  fragrance  of  orange-blossoms  breathed 
softly  on  him  from  the  garden,  but  could  not  soothe  his  perturbation, 
nor  could  the  noise  of  the  fountain  hard  by  that  came  in  through  the 
paper-glazed  windows.  Everything  palled  upon  him ;  the  silken  hang- 
ings interwoven  with  gold  that  decorated  his  apartment,  the  brightly 
tessellated  floor,  in  short,  the  wealth  and  Oriental  luxury  that  were  on 
every  side  were,  this  morning,  less  than  naught  to  him. 

The  Chinese  have  a  song  that  runs  somewhat  in  this  manner  : 

At  first,  man  hungers  for  a  meal  ; 
And  then,  that  clothes  his  form  conceal; 
Finely  attired,  a  wife  he  craves ; 
Married,  for  palanquins  he  raves ; 
Supplied  with  horses,  mules,  and  lands, 
Official  rank  he  next  demands ; 
Ennobled,  he  would  yet  climb  higher, 
Till  by  degrees  he  claims  empire ; 
At  last  enthroned  as  Heaven's  son, 
He  thinks  not  yet  his  dues  are  won, 
But,  yearning  still  for  something  more, 
'Gainst  Death  he  fain  would  bolt  the  door. 
Fool,  Death  alone  thy  wants  can  tame : 
"  I  crave,"  thy  epitaph  and  name. 

But  greed  for  more  is,  I  fear,  too  common  to  the  human  race  fairly 
to  indicate  the  cause  of  Wang-Chi-Poo's  disquietude.  His  discontent 
was  of  a  less  personal  description,  though  it  was  connected  with  ambi- 
tion :  it  was  of  a  more  truly  Chinese  character  than  the  proverb  just 
quoted.  It  had  its  root  in  his  country's  ancestor- worship ;  and  to 
Western  ears  it  will  sound  peculiar.     Wang-Chi-Poo,  though  barely 


4    .,     ,,  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

'forty-s^eri  j^mof  age,  had  reached  the  Second  Mandarin's  rank,  and 
the  cause  of  his  discontent  was  the  conviction  of  his  incapacity  to  secure, 
by  the  usual  means,  the  yellow  button  of  the  first  rank.  Nor  was  it 
for  the  gratification  that  this  yellow  button  would  confer  on  his  personal 
pride  that  he  craved  this,  but — here  comes  in  the  distinction,  and,  O 
land  of  the  Antipodes,  O  land  of  the  Topsy-turvy,  it  is  a  curious  one 
it  was  to  gratify  the  pride  of  his  grandmother,  now  some  twenty- 
five  years  in  her  grave.  Takiug  everything  into  consideration,  for  a 
man  still  in  his  prime,  surrounded  with  every  luxury  and  temj)ted  by 
wealth  and  leisure  to  lead  a  life  of  pleasure,— for  such  a  man  thus  to 
cast  his  longings  and  his  aspirations  backward  to  a  previous  generation 
illustrates,  I  think,  one  of  the  most  beautiful  traits  of  the  Chinese  char- 
acter, and  it  is  one  that  might  well  be  copied  by  other  peoples.  Wang- 
Chi-Poo  therefore  pulled  his  queue  discontentedly,  and  continued  to 
brood  on  the  hard  fate  of  his  progenitrix  thus  deprived,  through  him, 
of  what  he  considered  her  just  due. 

We  in  the  West  announce  our  coming  with  a  knock  ;  those  in  the 
East  enter  first  and  knock  afterward.  Thus  it  happened  that  Wang- 
Chi-Poo  was  abruptly  disturbed  in  his  meditations  by  the  presence  of 
his  secretary,  before  his  entrance  was  so  much  as  suspected.  The  new- 
comer was  a  small,  narrow-chested  young  man  with  a  large  head  and 
eyes  like  coals,  set  ofi*  by  a  pair  of  enormous  spectacles  tied  by  bows 
behind  his  ears.  He  was  attired  in  the  garb  of  the  literary  class,  and, 
with  much  ceremony,  took  his  seat  opposite  Wang-Chi-Poo,  presenting 
him  with  a  neatly-enveloped  package  of  manuscript  as  he  sat  down. 
Wang-Chi-Poo  weariedly  took  up  the  parcel,  only  to  allow  it  to  drop 
as  weariedly  into  his  lap. 

"  O  Taonsu,"  he  observed  at  last,  "  I  am  not  in  harmony  with 
state  papei-s,  and  the  doctrines  of  Confucius  sadly  pall  on  me  to-day. 
Amuse  me,  rather ;  tell  me  the  doings  of  the  town ;  or  stay  I  thou 
who  hast  sojourned  in  the  land  of  Foreign  Devils,  tell  me  more  of  it. 
Tell  me  again  of  this  land  beyond  the  seas,  where  they  dress  in  the 
color  of  coals  and  wear  shining  black  boxes  for  coverings  of  the  head  ; 
where,  as  thou  hast  said,  they  call  change  progress,  and  select  an  em- 
peror every  four  years,  though  the  moment  he  is  on  the  throne  they  pro- 
ceed to  look  out  for  a  new  one ;  whereof  this  same  emperor,  as  thou 
hast  told  me,  is  yet  a  god  during  the  first  two  years  of  his  term,  a 
demon  during  his  last,  and  behold  when  he  is  stripped  of  his  authority 
and  a  new  ruler  elected  there  are  none  so  poor  as  to  do  him  honor. 
Have  they  religions  there,  O  Taonsu,  and  do  the  followers  of  Confucius 
numl)er  many?'' 

"  There  are  many  from  the  Flowery  Kingdom  in  America,  Great 
Excellency,  whom  the  press  of  hunger  has  driven  thither,  and  a  few  in 
the  schools  who,  like  myself,  were  sent  out  by  His  Celestial  Majesty  to 
be  instructed  in  their  sciences." 

"  And  what  are  their  sciences,  O  Taonsu  ?  Is  it  true  that  the  fiery 
horse  walks  on  big  stilts  through  their  cities,  crushing  and  trampling 
down  all  before  it  ?  Is  it  true,  too,  that  each  man  takes  only  one  she- 
devil  for  his  wife,  and  even  so  is  obliged  to  cut  off  her  nails  that  she 
can't  scratch?" 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  6 

Taonsu  raised  his  eyebrows  with  a  queer  little  smile. 

"  They  certainly  cut  off  their  nails,  Great  Excellency ;  but  as  for 
one  man  taking  only  one  she-devil  for  his  wife,  they  often  take  as  many 
as  we  do,  only  the  process  is  different.  Permit  me,  Your  Excellency ; 
the  newspaper  around  this  manuscript  is  of  Western  origin  and  chanced 
to  come  over  in  the  last  steam-junk."  And  Taonsu,  removing  the  parcel 
from  his  patron^s  lap,  untied  it  and  spread  the  enveloping  wrapper  flat 
out  on  the  floor.  "  There,  Your  Excellency,"  he  continued,  pointing 
to  the  advertisement  of  a  lawyer  who  guaranteed  absolute  divorce,  with 
perfect  secrecy  thrown  in,  for  ten  dollars,  "  when  a  man  wants  a  new 
wife  he  goes  to  this  lawyer,  states  his  complaints,  and  gets  freed  from 
the  old  one  by  paying  down  his  money.  This  is  the  first  step."  Then 
Taonsu  ran  his  eye  down  the  sheet  till  he  came  to  the  advertisement  of 
a  matrimonial  agency.  "  And  here  is  the  second  step,"  he  continued. 
"  He  visits  this  agency,  pays  down  ten  chop-dollars  more,  and  selects 
from  a  series  of  photographs  he  is  shown  the  woman  whose  picture  he 
likes  best.  Thus  for  twenty  chop-dollars  in  all  he  is  both  rid  of  his 
old  wife  and  provided  with  a  new  one." 

"  What  strange  devils  these  Foreign  Devils  are !"  said  Wang  Chi- 
Poo,  reflectively ;  "  to  understand  them  thou  must  look  at  them  upside 
down.     But  our  people,  how  do  they  prosper  ?"  he  went  on,  inquiringly. 

"  They  did  well  until  too  many  came ;  then  the  natives  massacred 
them." 

"  Thev  massacred  them  ?" 

"  Even  so." 

"  But  why,  when  our  people  were  many  ?  If  they  were  few  it  were 
more  natural." 

"  Excellency,  the  natives  feared  we  would  overrun  their  country  and 
take  the  bread  out  of  the  mouths  of  their  own  children ;  but  here  is 
mention  of  our  people  in  this  very  paper,  and  what  they  suffer."  And 
Taonsu  read  a  serio-comic  description  of  a  late  ball  given  at  Washing- 
ton by  the  Chinese  Legation,  with  an  exaggerated  account  of  the  scram- 
ble for  supper.  This  he  translated  remarkably  well,  only  taking  in  too 
literal  a  sense  the  Western  humor. 

On  Wang-Chi-Poo,  of  course,  the  humor  would  have  been  entirely 
lost ;  to  him  only  the  indignity  was  manifest.  The  Chinese  Embassy 
had  been  insulted ;  and  he  swore  lustily  in  the  dialect  of  Confucius, 
and  would  not  be  comforted. 

"This  last  occurred  some  time  ago,"  resumed  Taonsu.  "More 
recently,  however,  they  have  passed  a  law  that  is  an  express  violation 
of  all  their  agreements,  for  it  will  exclude  our  people  entirely  from 
their  shores." 

In  Wang-Chi-Poo's  eyes,  the  desire  to  exclude  his  people  fur- 
nished rather  a  curious  instance  of  that  topsy-turviness  he  had  re- 
marked upon,  but  the  insult  inflicted  on  the  Legation  was  a  breach  of 
tliat  ceremonial  which  to  a  Chinaman  is  as  the  breath  of  life  itself. 
For  a  long  time  he  swore ;  then,  his  passion  s^ibsiding,  he  chewed  the 
recollection  like  a  melancholy  cud. 

"  Go  on,"  he  said  at  last,  "  read  me  something  more  of  these  Foreign 
Devils.     What  do  those  great  letters  say  on  the  top  of  the  sheet  ?" 


g  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

Taonsu,  thus  directed,  resumed  his  office  of  interpreter. 

"  They  speak,  you  see.  Great  Excellency,  of  the  unprotected  con- 
dition of  their  harbors,  showing  the  billions  and  billions  of  wealth  that 
lie  exposed  to  any  invader  with  no  provision  for  their  defence.  Each 
city  on  the  coast,  it  is  stated,  could  easily  be  laid  in  ashes  by  a  fleet  of 
even  a  fiflh-rate  power." 

"  And  is  this  true,  O  Taonsu  ?'* 

"  Too  true.  Your  Excellency.  To  defend  the  great  city  of  New 
York,  which  is  almost  as  large  as  this  city  which  we  inhabit,  there  are 
barely  half  a  dozen  forts  well-nigh  crumbling  into  the  dust." 

"  How  many  cities  are  there  on  the  coast  ?" 

Taonsu  reflected.  "  There  are  at  least  six  of  the  flrst  class,  and 
innumerable  small  towns." 

"  How  many  days'  sail  is  it  to  this  land  ?" 

^*  Steam,  Great  Excellency,  has  bridged  the  ocean." 

"  Taonsu,  leave  me :  I  would  think." 

When  a  Westerner  "  thinks,"  he  generally  requires  the  repose  of 
absolute  quiet ;  when  a  Chinaman  "  thinks,"  his  cogitations  are  assisted 
by  a  noise.  The  same  results  are  attained  by  exactly  the  reverse 
process.  Stillness  is  proverbial  of  the  fisherman\s  craft ;  in  China  the 
fisherman  surrounds  himself  with  gongs.  The  Chinese  watchman  beats 
his  rattle,  not  to  let  the  householder  know  that  all  is  well,  but  to  make 
thieves  and  evil-doers  aware  that  he  is  about.  And  where,  under 
Western  civilization,  a  man  having  a  grudge  murders  his  foe,  a  China- 
man, instead,  kills  himself  upon  his  enemy's  threshold. 

Wang-Chi-Poo  entered  the  garden  with  the  purpose  of  seeking  his  » 
wives'  quarters  beyond,  for  Wang-Chi-Poo  had  one  first  wife,  and — not 
to  offend  the  delicate  sensibilities  of  my  lady-readers — he  had  several 
wives  besides.  This  garden  was  a  marvel  of  quaintness  in  its  way.  It 
was  crossed  and  recrossed  in  every  direction  by  little  porcelain-paved 
paths  ;  brightly-painted  bridges  spanned  diminutive  canals,  and  iu  the 
middle  of  the  garden  was  a  fountain  from  which  the  canals  all  radiated 
outward.  In  the  basin  of  the  fountain  stood  an  enormous  artificial 
flamingo,  of  so  natural  an  appearance  that  it  served  as  a  perpetual  puzzle 
to  a  live  flamingo  which  could  do  nothing  but  walk  around  him  and 
stare  at  him  the  entire  day.  Passing  through  the  garden,  Wang-Chi- 
Poo  entered  his  wives'  quarters  by  a  curious  gateway  in  the  wall,  cut  in 
the  exact  shape  of  a  large  teapot. 

Naomoona,  the  first  wife,  was  reclining  luxuriously  in  a  hammock ; 
Taomoona,  the  second,  was  similarly  engaged ;  Saomoona  occupied  a 
third  hammock ;  and,  in  fact,  the  whole  number,  down  to  the  very 
newest,  were  quietly  swinging  themselves,  keeping  time  to  the  oscilla- 
tions of  their  bodies  by  the  motion  of  their  fans. 

On  the  floor  was  a  highly-decorative  bamboo  mat,  and  on  this  some 
half-dozen  little  Wang-Chi-Poos  were  disporting  themselves.  A  shout 
of  delight  from  the  latter  announced  the  coming  of  the  author  of  their 
beings ;  the  ladies  severally  rose  from  their  hammocks,  and  each,  taking 
hold  of  the  chair  that  was  nearest  her,  proceeded  to  wipe  from  its  seat 
with  her  dress  imaginary  particles  of  dust. 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  7 

"  The  Light  of  the  Household  shall  sit  on  my  chair,"  exclaimed 
Naomoona.  "  No,  he  shall  sit  on  mine,'^  interrupted  Taomoona.  "  Nay, 
but  on  mine,"  added  Saomoona.  But  the  Light  of  the  Household  solved 
the  dilemma  by  taking  his  seat  with  the  juvenile  Wang-Chi-Poos  on  the 
floor,  drawing  some  curious  little  tissue  butterflies  from  his  voluminous 
pocket,  and  with  his  fan  making  them  mount  into  the  air  for  the  edifi- 
cation of  his  children. 

"  What  would  you  think,  O  wives  of  my  heart,  if  I  should  never 
sit  on  any  of  your  chairs  again  ?  if,  on  the  contrary,  I  should  take  my 
seat  on  the  lofty  stern  of  one  of  His  Majesty's  smoke-junks  and  sail 
away  to  the  laud  where  the  White-skin  Devils  abide  ?" 

A  hush  of  intense  surprise  greeted  this  speech ;  then  each  of  the 
ladies  raised  her  curious  little  enamelled  face  over  the  edge  of  her 
curious  little  hammock  and  stared  at  her  husband,  who  was  still  engaged 
with  the  butterflies. 

"  They  say  that  they  make  silks  of  strange  designs,  these  Foreign 
Devils,"  said  number  one. 

"  And  set  diamonds  in  a  way  we  know  naught  of  here,"  observed 
the  second. 

"Ay,  and  cut  their  stones  to  make  them  shine  with  unwonted 
lustre,"  observed  a  third.  "A  jeweller  from  India  once  showed  me 
some  that  had  been  cut,  he  said,  in  barbaric  lands." 

"  The  house  would  be  dark,"  exclaimed  Saomoona,  "  without  the 
presence  of  its  Light,  but  we  will  curb  our  impatience  till  his  return 
bringing  with  him  these  weird  proofs  of  the  Foreign  Devils'  skill." 

Wang-Chi-Poo  rose  from  the  floor,  tightened  his  broad  red  sash, 
rearranged  the  folds  of  his  voluminous  tunic,  and  called  for  his  palan- 
quin. He  felt  annoyed,  just  as  a  AVesterner  might,  at  the  flippant 
reception  his  serious  proposal  had  met  with.  "  Wang-Chi-Poo  has 
not  gone  yet,"  he  muttered,  "  but  should  he  depart  he  will  console 
himself  with  the  reflection  that  his  wives  will  bear  up  against  his 
return." 


CHAPTER  II. 


The  strictness  of  ceremonial  used  in  approaching  His  Celestial 
Majesty  was  in  no  wise  relaxed  for  Wang-Chi-Poo,  though  he  was  a 
mandarin  of  next  to  the  highest  rank ;  and  for  the  purpose  of  approach- 
ing His  Majesty  Wang-Chi-Poo  had  called  his  palanquin.  To  go 
in  proper  state  required,  for  Wang-Chi-Poo,  six  runners  in  front  and 
six  behind,  without  counting  the  fourteen  bearers  of  the  sedan-chair. 
Ahead  of  all  rode  a  horseman  with  a  huge  sheet  of  paper  in  his  hand 
and  horns  like  rams'  horns  fastened  to  his  cap  on  each  side  of  his  head. 
The  duty  of  the  horseman  was  to  strike  awe  into  the  public  by  loudly 
reading  off  the  paper  the  titles  and  dignities  of  Wang-Chi-Poo  coming 
on  behind ;  that  of  the  runners,  to  prevent  these  same  honors  from 
being  forgotten,  by  belaboring  the  public  over  the  heads  with  their 
staves. 

Not  to  particularize  the  precise  road  the  procession  took,  suffice  it 


3  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

to  say  that  in  due  time  it  arrived  before  the  walls  of  the  Imperial 
palace,  where  the  great  man  descended. 

The  plan  of  this  palace  much  resembles  one  of  those  curious  Chinese 
boxes  which  you  open  only  to  find  another  box  inside.  One  wall  serves 
but  as  an  outwork  to  another  wall,  and  one  series  of  buildings  but  as 
shells  to  other  buildings  within ;  all  interspersed  with  court-yards  and 
gardens  in  a  way  to  baffle  and  bewilder  whoever  would  describe  it. 

Wang-Chi-Poo,  being  received  by  at  least  twenty-five  court  officials, 
and  havmg  them  as  guides,  threaded  without  much  difficulty  the 
labyrinth,  and  was  ushered  at  last  into  an  apartment  at  the  lower  end 
of  which,  in  a  sort  of  niche  partly  screened  by  a  mat,  the  Son  of  Heaven 
sat  on  his  throne.  Though  but  a  boy  in  years,  the  sovereign  was  a 
veteran  in  intelligence.  Wang-Chi-Poo,  on  arriving  at  the  threshold  of 
the  sacred  precincts,  dropped  on  his  stomach  and  advanced  into  the 
apartment  on  his  hands  and  knees,  making  a  series  of  little  hops  like 
a  frog,  with  his  head  in  the  air  and  his  mouth  open ;  for,  being  a  stout 
man,  it  was  a  decidedly  uncomfortable  manner  of  progress.  Opposite 
the  niche  he  stopped. 

"O  great  Son  of  Heaven,  august  Lord  of  the  Universe,  and 
Master  of  Ten  Thousand  Kingdoms,'^  he  exclaimed,  "  an  idea,  a  great 
idea,  has  taken  possession  of  thy  slave." 

His  youthful  Majesty  glanced  down  condescendingly  from  over  the 
mat. 

"  Take  care,  O  Wang-Chi-Poo :  ideas  are  dangerous,"  he  observed, 
with  precocious  instinct;  "ideas  are  as  the  witch-fires  in  the  lowlands  that 
lead  a  man  on  rejoicingly  only  to  engulf  him  in  mud.  Is  this  idea  of 
thine  inspired  by  Confucius  ?" 

"No,  sire,  it  is  a  new  idea,  one  born  of  extraordinary  circum- 
itances." 

"Hush;  I  have  heard  it  said  that  there  is  nothing  new  but  the 
forgotten." 

*'  True,  sire,  but  this  idea  is  not  altogether  my  own  ;  rather  let  me 
say  it  is  sprung  from  thy  great  sire's  generosity." 

"  Rise  then,  O  Wang-Chi-Poo ;  but  if  it  be  not  as  thou  hast  stated 
the  bamboo  basket  shall  lift  thy  head  higher  than  thou  aspirest  to  raise 
it,  and  Foong-Shoong  [the  evil  spirit]  shall  take  thy  body." 

"  Great  Majesty,  I  crave  thy  indulgence ;  what  I  would  say  requires 
secrecy  for  its  success." 

Now,  with  most  Oriental  sovereigns  to  clap  the  hands  is  the  signal 
to  approach ;  with  the  Son  of  Heaven  it  is  the  reverse.  The  Son  of 
Heaven  clapped  his  hands  behind  the  mat,  and  instantly  the  numerous 
attendants  lining  the  apartment  disappeared,  as  if  by  magic,  through 
trap-doors  in  the  floor. 

Left  alone  with  his  august  sovereign,  Wang-Chi-Poo  proceeded  to 
relate  the  substance  of  Taonsu's  communications,  describing  the  unpro- 
tected condition  of  the  seaboard  towns  across  the  ocean  and  their 
enormous  wealth,  and  showing  with  how  little  risk,  owing  to  the  semi- 
wvihzed  condition  of  the  inhabitants,  they  might  belaid  under  tribute. 
Then  he  went  on  to  portray  the  powerful  navy  China  now  had,  the  vast 
Bums  that  had  been  expended  on  it,  and  the  growing  conviction  of  the 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  9 

people  that,  because  it  had  accomplished  so  little,  the  old  style  of  war- 
junks  was  superior.  Lastly,  Wang-Chi-Poo  described  the  indignities 
China  had  suffered  from  Foreign  Devils  generally,  jumbling  up  the  ex- 
pedition of  the  French,  the  half-forgotten  burning  of  the  summer  palace 
by  the  English,  the  Chinese  riots  in  America,  and  the  passage  of  the 
Chinese-exclusion  bill,  and  winding  up  as  a  grand  climax  with  the  sup- 
posed indignities  inflicted  on  His  Majesty's  Embassy  in  Washington. 

As  he  finished,  the  eyes  of  his  precocious  Majesty  snapped  fire. 

"  And  why  has  no  one  told  me  of  this  last,  O  Wang-Chi-Poo  ?"  for, 
in  the  opinion  of  the  sovereign  also,  the  supper  episode  was  a  more 
grievous  insult  than  the  anti-Chinese  bill. 

"  Because,  Great  Majesty,  the  Son  of  Heaven  is  supposed  to  know 
all." 

The  Son  of  Heaven  pondered  deeply  over  this  home-thrust. 

"  And  thou  couusellest  me  to  use  my  powerful  armaments  for  ven- 
geance ?"  he  observed  at  last.  "  Thy  idea  is  not  without  value.  Long 
now  have  we  had  these  foreign  steamers,  and  long  have  we  been  doubtful 
what  use  to  make  of  them.  Ah,  Wang-Chi-Poo,  thou  givest  me  an 
idea  that  is  not  in  Confucius, — namely,  to  signalize  my  accession  by 
some  notable  event.  Thou  givest  me  an  idea  ;  I  will,  I  will,  I  will ; 
yes,  I  will  take  the  reins  of  power,  as  the  law  now  allows  me,  into 
my  own  hands,  and  declare  war  against  these  Foreign  Devils ;  thus  I 
will  stretch  out  my  arms  to  devastate  their  cities  as  they  have  devas- 
tated mine, — why  not  ?  These  expensive  armaments  brought  from  across 
the  sea  shall  go  back  across  the  sea  aryi  declare  in  tones  of  thunder  that 
the  majesty  of  China  is  more  than  a  name,  and  His  Majesty  more  than 
a  child.  But  stay,  thou  who  hast  really  had  something  to  do  with 
giving  me  this  idea,  what  wouldst  thou  advise  ?  Though  thou  art  but 
of  the  second  rank,  thy  head  is  not  completely  addled,  and  I  have  often 
thought  thee  not  quite  the  fool  thou  seemest." 

Wang-Chi-Poo  modestly  acknowledged  this  compliment  by  a  bow. 
Before  replying  to  the  question,  however,  he  ran  the  long  nail  of  his 
little  finger  down  the  breast-seam  of  his  tunic. 

"Tell  me,  who  should  command  this  expedition?"  continued  the 
sovereign. 

Wang-Chi-Poo  still  hesitated.  "August  Son  of  Heaven,"  he  at 
last  replied,  "  thou  hast  many  admirals  educated  in  foreign  lands  to  com- 
mand thy  fleet ;  but  I  was  thinking  that  if  some  commissioner  could  be 
found  to  accompany  it,  some  one  not  quite  of  the  highest  rank,  for  so 
he  might  be  arrogant  and  spoil  all  by  his  wilfulness, — one  who  was  well 
read  in  Confucius,  but  yet  not  so  blind  a  follower  of  Conflicius  as  to 
refuse  to  look  beyond, — one  whose  greatest  ambition  was  to  raise  an 
ancestor  who  had  no  rank,  and  who  would  give  as  security  for  his  suc- 
cess perchance  a  million  chop-dollars, — I  was  thinking  that  if  such  a 
man  could  be  found,  the  nominal  direction  of  this  expedition  could  be 
safely  reposed  in  his  hands." 

"  But  where  is  such  a  man,  O  Wang-Chi-Poo  ?  Gladly  would  I  lay 
my  hands  on  him." 

Wang-Chi-Poo  bowed  self-complacently. 

"  By  the  bones  of  my  ancestors,  I  almost  believe  thou  meanest  thy- 


20  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

self  I  Ha !  if  it  is  thou,  I  shall  have  to  ask  TWO  million  chop-dollars. 
Thou  art  too  'cute,  O  Wang-Chi-Poo." 

"  Thy  servant  is  too  poor." 

"  Say  rather  ray  servant  is  too  rich.  But  stay ;  there  is  something 
in  thy  plan,  and,  as  thou  thyself  hast  said,  it  demands  secrecy  and 
discretion.  Regents  are  obstructive,  courtiers  are  bowing  puppets, 
while  ministers  of  the  crown  are  as  pots  that  leak  at  the  bottom  and 
have  sieves  for  sides.  Thou  didst  mention  a  certain  Taonsu  whom  our 
generosity  permitted  to  study  in  the  Foreign  Devils'  lands ;  with  him  I 
might  more  freely  consult  as  to  the  likelihood  of  what  thou  hast  told 
me.     Wang-Chi-Poo,  I  salute  thee ;  get  thee  hence." 

Then  Wang-Chi-Poo  retired, — retired  as  is  the  custom  in  China, 
backing  out  not  only  through  the  first  door,  but  through  the  second, 
backing  out  through  one  room  after  another,  backing  out  through 
court-yard  after  court-yard,  and  through  the  labyrinth  of  gardens  by 
which  he  had  come;  keeping  his  face  turned  always  in  the  opposite 
direction  to  that  in  which  he  was  going,  and  salaaming  to  this  official 
and  salaaming  to  that  as  one  after  the  other  passed  him  on.  Nor  was 
the  manner  of  his  progress  changed  on  arriving  outside  the  palace; 
for  on  entering  his  palanquin  it  was  borne  to  his  home  backward 
through  the  streets,  so  that  his  face  might  never  be  turned  away  from 
that  of  his  juvenile  but  Celestial  Majesty. 


CHAPTER  III. 

It  has  been  said  of  Russia  that  the  system  of  its  government  is 
military  despotism  tempered  by  assassination.  Of  China  it  may  be  said 
that  the  system  of  its  government  is  competitive  examination  tempered 
by  purchase. 

China  has  reached  the  highest  development  of  what  is  called  here 
Civil  Service  Reform,  only  in  China  the  subject-matter  of  the  exami- 
nation is  always  Confucius. 

No  matter  what  the  post  sought  for  may  be,  Confucius  is  always 
the  test  of  fitness.  For  a  collectorship  of  customs — Confucius ;  for  a 
generalship  in  the^  army — Confucius ;  Confucius  for  every  post,  Con- 
fucius for  secretaries,  ministers,  and  judges,  with  a  sublime  impar- 
tiality and  a  sublime  indifference  to  the  particular  requirements  of  each 


case. 


For  positions  in  the  navy,  however,  in  addition  to  the  doctrines  of 
Confucius,  a  thorough  knowledge  of  seamanship  is  required,  and  the 
Naval  Academy  at  Foo-Chow,  under  the  management  of  European 
instructors,  turns  out  quite  efficient  officers.  These,  in  addition  to  the 
many  young  men  educated  in  the  European  seats  of  naval  instruction, 
form  a  sufficiently  large  class  to  draw  upon  for  the  command  of  their 
new  Armstrong  and  German-built  steamers. 

I  can  think  of  no  more  glaring  contradiction  than  this  rapid  engraft- 
ment  of  new  methods  and  of  new  sciences  on  the  old  trunk  of  Chinese 
civilization ;  this  scientifically  built  and  scientifically  managed  fleet, 
armed  with  steel  guns,  and  under  the  command  of  a  monarch  who 


A  DREAM  OF  CONqUEST.  H 

attains  his  majority  at  the  age  of  fourteen ;  this  scientifically  managed 
army  too,  equipped  with  arms  of  precision  at  the  whim  of  a  sovereign, 
however  precocious,  who  sits  on  an  ivory  throne  behind  a  bamboo 
screen. 

China  is  awaking  from  her  long  sleep ;  her  four  hundred  millions 
are  beginning  to  rub  their  eyes  and  to  look  about  them  with  all  that 
confusion  of  ideas  which  occurs  on  suddenly  encountering  the  light, — 
trying  to  reconcile  Confucius  with  foundries,  and  Western  ideas  gen- 
erally with  paper  butterflies  and  gongs.  As  if  to  give  a  last  touch  to 
a  situation  strikingly  suggestive  of  op6ra  bouffe  already,  the  command 
of  expeditions  that  would  be  supposed  to  stand  in  need  of  extra  intelli- 
gence is  often  a  mere  matter  of  barter. 

Thus,  Wang-Chi-Poo,  utterly  ignorant  of  steamships,  scarcely  having 
more  experience  of  naval  matters  than  was  to  be  acquired  by  paddling 
his  little  boat  on  his  artificial  lake,  aspired  to  command  a  European- 
built  armada,  and  was  willing  to  pay  down  two  million  chop-dollars 
for  that  distinction.  One  saving  clause,  however,  removed  at  a  stroke 
the  most  striking  absurdities  of  the  situation, — namely,  that  his  command 
would  be  merely  titular,  and  that  he  really  would  have  nothing  more 
to  do  with  the  leadership  than  the  gilded  figure-head  on  the  bow  of  the 
vessel  that  bore  him.  Looked  at  from  another  stand-point  it  becomes 
more  natural  still.  Wang-Chi-Poo  would  be  merely  the  representative 
of  his  sovereign  on  the  high  seas,  a  commissioner,  an  envoy  extraor- 
dinary to  His  Majesty's  own  fleet. 

This  fleet  consisted  of  seventy  vessels,  principally  steamers  and  of 
iron  or  composite  construction.  I  give  a  list  of  them,  which  is  official : 
five  armored  men-of-war;  two  cruisers  of  the  protected  type ;  two  cruisers 
of  the  partially  protected  type ;  eighteen  unprotected  cruisers ;  forty- 
three  gun-boats,  of  which  two  were  protected  and  eleven  partly  protected. 

The  most  extraordinary  fact,  however,  is  the  slight  notice  the  de- 
velopment of  this  really  extensive  navy  has  attracted  in  foreign  lands. 
We  hear  of  the  Japanese  navy,  but  the  Chinese  navy  has  been  steadily 
improving  till  the  Celestial  Empire  to-day  is  one  of  the  actual  naval 
powers  of  the  world,  and  yet  ninety-nine  Americans  out  of  every 
hundred  still  believe  its  fleet  to  consist  of  sailing-junks  alone. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


Now  let  us  turn  to  a  different  quarter  of  the  world,  but  one  with 
which  we  shall  have  more  to  do ;  let  us  turn  to  that  country  whereof 
the  inhabitants  "  dress  in  the  color  of  coals  and  wear  on  their  heads 
for  covering  black  boxes  of  silk ;  where  every  fourth  year  they  elect 
an  emperor,  and  the  moment  he  is  up  proceed  to  search  out  a  new  one ; 
to  the  land  whose  emperor  is  a  god  for  his  first  two  years,  and  a  demon 
during  his  last,  and  when  he  is  out,  and  a  new  emperor  is  selected, 
behold  scarce  a  man  can  be  found  so  poor  as  to  do  the  old  one  honor ;" 
let  us  turn  to  the  capital  of  this  emperor,  even  to  the  Houses  of  Con- 
gress which  make  the  laws. 

It  is  exactly  five  months  later  than  the  events  related  in  the  first 


22  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

chapter,  and  the  session  of  Congress  is  drawing  to  its  close.  Many 
events  have  taken  place  during  this  Congress :  for  instance,  China  has 
made  certain  preposterous  demands  in  retaliation  for  the  Chinese- 
exclusion  bill,  and,  failing  to  receive  satisfaction,  has  just  withdrawn 
its  legation.  This  act,  which,  if  done  by  a  more  civilized  country, 
would  be  held  tantamount  to  a  declaration  of  war,  was  viewed  by  the 
people  at  large  with  about  as  much  concern  as  if  the  King  of  the 
Sandwich  Islands  had  abruptly  withdraw^  his  representative.  War 
was  held  to  exist  at  this  very  moment  with  China,  and  the  prospect  of 
the  dragon  across  the  sea  at  last  showing  his  teeth  caused  general  mem- 
ment. 

The  session  of  this  particular  Congress  is  drawing  near  its  close, 
as  we  have  said ;  consequently,  in  the  slang  of  the  day,  many  bills  are 
being  "  railroaded  through."  The  River  and  Harbor  bill,  for  instance, 
has  })assed,  "  under  a  suspension  of  the  rules,"  and  one  among  its  many 
clauses  is  an  appropriation  of  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  for  widening 
and  dredging  Little  Log-Rolling  Creek. 

This  bill,  be  it  understood,  was  not  for  fortifying  the  rivers  and 
harbors,  but  simply  for  improving  them :  Little  Log-Roiling  Creek 
was  to  be  improved  into  a  river ;  the  edict  of  the  House  had  gone 
forth.  No  one  outside  of  the  locality  through  which  the  creek  passed 
liad  ever  heard  of  it,  nor  was  it  on  any  map  that  the  eyes  of  man  had 
ever  seen ;  but  no  doubt  when  Little  Log-Rolling  Creek  had  been 
dredged  and  widened  it  would  grow  into  a  river,  and  that  was  all 
that  could  be  expected  of  it.  No  city  stood  upon  its  banks,  but  once 
improved  many  cities  might.  And  at  all  events  its  improvement 
would  afford  bathing-facilities  to  the  juvenile  community  thereabouts, 
of  which  they  had  long  stood  in  special  need.  So  the  River  and 
Harbor  bill  passed^  and  each  clause  of  its  many  new  appropriations 
was  passed  with  it, — passed  with  the  rush  of  an  express  train,  and 
regardless  of  the  fact  that  there  was  yet  an  unexpended  balance  of 
$16,636,362.71  from  the  appropriation  of  the  preceding  year.  The 
bill  for  defending  the  harbors,  however,  which  was  on  the  calendar  for 
to-day,  was  expected  to  create  a  very  lively  debate,  and  the  galleries 
were  packed. 

At  three  o'clock  precisely,  a  certain  Mr.  Starr  arose  and  clearly 
demonstrated  the  unprotected  condition  of  the  cities  on  the  seaboard ; 
pointing  out,  in  the  course  of  his  remarks,  the  necessity  for  providing 
steel  guns,  and  showing  the  cost  and  time  required  for  merely  the  plant 
to  produce  these. 

A  ^Ir.  Blank  replied  that  iron  guns  were  quite  as  good  as  steel 
guns  ;  while  a  Mr.  Asterisk  boldly  declared  that  no  guns  were  needed 
at  all.  Going  on  to  speak  of  Daniel  Webster,  he  touched  gracefully 
on  the  American  Eagle,  and,  closing  in  a  pyrotechnic  display  of  choice 
language,  said  that  the  glory  of  the  American  name  was  sufficient  to 
keeji  the  enemy  from  our  door. 

To  this  a  Mr.  Dash  replied,  in  suave  accents.  "  The  eloquence  of 
the  gentleman  who  has  last  spoken,"  he  said,  "  is  as  flowery  as  the 
flowers  that  bloom  in  the  spring,  but,  like  them,  it  has  nothing  to 
do  with  the  case :  the  question  is  about  guns,  not  eagles,  nor  can  any 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  13 

skill  of  rhetoric  confound  Daniel  Webster  with  dynamite  bombs.  The 
gentleman  has  observed  that  the  grandeur  of  the  American  name  is 
a  sufficient  guarantee  against  invaders ;  this  is  like  the  belief  of  the 
Emperor  of  China,  during  his  last  war  with  England,  that  the  list  of 
his  titles  loudly  proclaimed  would  suffice  to  stay  the  advance  of  the 
enemy  into  his  dominions.  While  speaking  of  the  Chinese,  every  one 
knows  that  a  Chinese-exclusion  bill  has  been  passed,  and  that,  failing 
to  receive  a  satisfactory  explanation  of  this,  the  Chinese  Minister  has 
demanded  his  credentials.  As  for  myself,  I  am  not  an  alarmist,  but 
this  action  may  mean  something.  Even  now  there  are  vague  rumors 
afloat  about  the  movements  of  the  Chinese  fleet.  Extravagant  as  it 
may  seem,  it  is  quite  possible  that  these  movements  may  be  ultimately 
directed  against  our  ports  or  shipping.  Three  Chinese  war- vessels 
have  lately  touched  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  ostensibly  on  a  cruise  of 
instruction  for  cadets,  but  no  cadets  are  on  board.  Five  more  ships  of 
the  same  nation,  it  is  well  known,  have  lately  appeared  in  South 
American  waters,  while  one  at  this  very  moment  is  creating  a  deserved 
sensation  in  Canada. 

"  Not  only  is  it  within  the  bounds  of  possibility  that  these  power- 
ful s(|uadrons  may  suddenly  concentrate  on  our  coast,  but,  consistently 
with  the  code  of  the  most  civilized  nations,  they  may  be  coming  to  strike 
in  revenge  for  the  violation  of  our  treaties  with  the  Chinese  Empire. 

"  To  be  sure,  such  a  navy  as  China  possesses,  and  in  the  hands  of 
such  a  people,  is  like  a  watch  in  the  hands  of  a  savage ;  but  the  very 
backwardness  of  that  country  would  make  it  oblivious  to  those  respon- 
sibilities which  would  restrain  a  more  enlightened  government ;  and, 
having  indulged  in  the  extravagance  of  a  large  European-built  fleet, 
it  might  be  induced  to  try  its  prowess  without  reflecting  upon  the  like- 
lihood of  retaliation.  At  all  events,  the  appearance  of  so  many 
Chinese  vessels  hovering  about  our  shores  is  most  unusual,  and,  being 
unusual,  it  ought  to  excite  suspicion." 

After  this  Mr.  Dash  gave  a  detailed  description,  obtained  from  the 
Navy  Department,  of  China's  armaments,  and  closed  with  a  timely 
reminder  as  to  the  risk  of  "  monkeying  with  a  buzz-saw." 

Alas  !  of  how  little  use  are  such  warnings  !  nothing  is  believed  till 
the  predicted  event  has  happened. 

"  What  is  your  idea  of  Parliament  ?"  was  once  asked  of  a  dis- 
tinguished foreigner  after  a  visit  to  the  classic  halls  of  Westminster. 
"  Why,  simply,"  was  his  reply,  "  how  much  better  and  more  expedi- 
tiously three  men  of  ordinary  business  capacity  could  have  accomplished 
the  work." 

I  am  afraid  the  present  case  was  an  instance  of  the  justice  of  this 
observation.  The  overwhelming  sentiment  of  the  country,  as  proved 
by  the  press,  was  unanimously  in  favor  of  our  adequately  protecting 
ourselves  against  invasion.  Congress,  too,  as  a  whole,  was  in  favor  of 
it ;  but  because  one  set  of  legislators  desired  steel  guns  and  another  set 
iron,  the  wishes  of  that  minority  which  desired  no  guns  at  all  carried 
the  day. 

One  word  more,  and  then  I  go  on.  From  the  speech  of  Mr.  Dash 
it  will  be  inferred  that  wiser  counsels  must  have  prevailed  at  the  last 


24  A  DREAM  OF  CONqUEST. 

moment  in  China,  and  that  the  pretext  for  withdrawing  her  legation 
from  Washington  was  rather  the  passage  of  the  Chinese-exclusion  bill 
than  the  absuixl  supper-party. 


CHAPTER  V. 


Among  those  who  listened  to  the  debate,  or  rather  let  me  say 
attended  it,  was  Mrs.  Percival  T.  McFlusterer.  Not  that  Mrs.  Perci- 
val  T.  cared  a  hair-pin  for  Congress ;  on  the  contrary,  she  despised 
politics  and  everythmg  connected  with  politics,  as  every  fashionable  New 
York  woman  does.  But  she  had  run  on  to  Washington  for  the  benefit 
of  the  earlier  spring  weather,  and  had  attended  Congress  as  she  might 
have  done  the  zoological  garden  or  the  menagerie  in  some  strange  place. 
Then,  l)esides,  Washington  was  becoming  a  fashionable  resort,  in  spite 
of  Congress  and  its  horde  of  politicians.  Unfortunately,  however,  the 
spring  weather  hung  fire,  and,  instead  of  the  balmy  breezes  she  had 
expected,  the  session  closed  in  a  flurry  of  snow.  The  flurry,  much  to 
Mr.  Percival  T.'s  displeasure,  carried  Madame  back  to  New  York. 
For  though  Mr.  Percival  T.  was  anything  but  a  careless  husband,  and 
toiled  day  and  night  for  his  wife,  he  did  like  just  occasionally  to  have 
a  "  let-up"  from  the  opera  and  a  chance  to  talk  stock  at  his  club.  In 
fact,  a  more  melancholy  spectacle  than  Mr.  P.  T.  at  the  opera  can 
scarcely  be  imagined.  A  fish  out  of  water  was  a  weak  simile  of  his 
case  :  indeed,  to  the  outer  world  Mr.  P.  T.  more  resembled  a  fish  than 
a  biped,  and,  so  far  as  spontaneity  went,  he  was  quite  as  cold-blooded.  In 
consequence,  he  was  voted  dull  in  general  society,  but  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  the  Stock  Exchange  he  was  dubbed  the  "  Razor." 

Mrs.  P.  T.,  however,  aspired  to  be  a  social  leader,  and  with  a  view 
to  that  rdle  had  of  course  obliged  her  husband  to  purchase  her  a  house 
"  on  the  Avenue."  It  was  at  this  house,  naturally,  that  Mrs.  P.  T. 
arrived,  bringing  on  with  her  the  snow-flurry  from  Washington. 

When  Mrs.  P.  T.  was  absent,  Mr.  P.  T.  invariably  put  out  the 
fires,  on  account  of  the  expense,  and  solaced  himself  over  a  register.  I 
can  imagine  no  drearier  sight  than  Mr.  P.  T.  sitting  warming  his  toes 
over  the  register,  taking  his  ease ;  but  then  Mr.  P.  T.,  as  we  must 
infer,  never  looked  comfortable  anywhere  except  on  the  floor  of  the 
Stock  Exchange. 

Mr.  P.  T.  happened  to  be  thus  solacing  himself  when  Mrs.  P.  T. 
arrived,  and  the  comfort — or  the  discomfort — of  her  lord  impressed  her 
disagreeably. 

Mrs.  P.  T.  had  a  way  of  entering  a  room  when  she  was  annoyed 
that  displayed  the  condition  of  her  feelings  without  her  uttering  a 
syllable.  In  her  heart  of  hearts,  Mrs.  McFlusterer  was  not  a  cruel 
woman,  but  she  was  an  irritable  one, — which  is  sometimes  worse. 

"I  just  ran  back  for  the  opera,"  she,  however,  observed,  lightly: 
"  so,  if  you'll  order  the  carriage,  I'll  be  ready  at  nine  sharp." 

P.  T.  groaned. 

"  Oh,  I  won't  keep  you  waiting,  dear,"  she  went  on,  persuasively ; 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  15 

"  no  fear  of  that.  I  found  Washington  cold  as  Lapland,  and  back 
lam." 

At  dinner  Mrs.  P.  T.  continued  her  sprightly  attack.  She  even 
remembered  here  and  there  fragments  of  the  speeches  she  had  heard  in 
Washington.  "  Oh,  my !"  she  ejaculated,  "just  think,  if  New  York 
were  really  bombarded,  what  should  we  do  ?" 

"  I  suppose  we'd  have  to  face  the  music,"  replied  Mr.  P.  T.,  with 
his  mind  still  on  the  opera ;  "  there's  some  things  worse  than  a  bom- 
bardment." 

"  But  just  think,  if  the  Chinese  should  really  come  !  One  of  those 
horrid  creatures  in  Congress  said  that  the  fleet  had  left  China  for  parts 
unknown." 

"  I  hope  they'll  get  there,"  said  Mr.  P.  T.,  beneath  his  breath. 

"  And  such  nasty  people,  these  Chinese !" 

"  I  once  made  a  corner  in  opium,"  Mr.  P.  T.  observed,  reflectively, 
"  but  they've  stopped  the  trade  now." 

"  I  wish  you'd  be  lively  and  agreeable  like  other  men,"  petulantly 
put  in  Mrs.  P.  T.  "  I  wanted  you  to  say  there  was  no  chance  of  their 
coming,  but  I  feel  it  in  my  bones  something  is  going  to  happen,  and 
I'm  sure  it  is  connected  with  the  Chinese." 

"If  they'll  only  come  and  bombard  the  Opera-House,"  muttered 
Mr.  P.  T.,  beneath  his  breath,  "  I'd  be  danged  if  I'd  stop  them." 

Mr.  P.  T.  at  the  opera,  as  I  have  already  intimated,  was  even  a 
more  melancholy  sight  than  he  was  at  his  family  register-side.  After 
he  had  stood  the  noisy  Wagnerian  music  as  long  as  he  could,  he  usually 
retreated  into  the  smoking-rooms,  where  he  found  some  other  congenial 
spirit  and  talked  over  the  market. 

It  was  really  P.  T.  who  made  that  now  famous  bon  mot  (and,  it 
being  the  only  one  he  had  ever  been  guilty  of  making  in  his  life,  it 
may  as  well  be  recorded), — namely,  that,  if  Wagner's  music  is  the 
music  of  the  future,  "  it  were  a  great  pity  not  to  postpone  it  to  then." 

"  Percival,  dear,"  lisped  Mrs.  P.  T.,  as  they  were  driving  home- 
ward from  the  opera  in  their  smart  brougham  on  the  evening  of  her 
return,  "  you  must  buy  me  Confucius  to-morrow.     Now  promise  me." 

"  Confucius !"  exclaimed  Mr.  P.  T.,  absently.  "  I'm  afraid  it  isn't 
listed :  it's  one  of  the  fancies,  I  suppose." 

Mrs.  P.  T.  laughed  out  loud.  "  I'm  not  talking  of  stocks.  Can't 
you  ever  get  them  out  of  your  head  ?" 

"  I  wonder  where  you'd  be  if  I  did  ?"  said  Mr.  P.  T.,  with  unwonted 
fire ;  then,  more  meekly,  "  You  mean  the  man  that  wrote  a  book  on 
China,  don't  you  ?" 

"  Yes,  and  Arnold's  '  Light  of  Asia,'  too.  I  know  the  Chinese  are 
coming.     I  told  you  before.     I  feel  it  in  my  bones." 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  was  a  woman  of  sudden  whims  and  turns ;  you 
could  no  more  tell  of  her  than  of  a  swallow  which  way  she  would  dart 
next.  Thus  forewarned,  we  are  prepared  for  the  startling  announce- 
ment she  made  to  Mr.  P.  T.  the  next  afternoon  when  he  returned 
home,  like  a  good  New  York  husband,  fairly  worn  out  from  his  oper- 
ations in  the  street,  and  with  the  books  she  had  asked  for  under  his 
arm. 


2g  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

«  Percival,  dear,  IVe  got  a  little  surprise  for  you,"  she  said. 

P.  T.  felt  uncomfortable;  be  knew  these  surprises  of  old.     "  What 

bit  The  asked,  feebly.  .      ,     ^  ^r      ^  -x  •*  i. 

.  "  Why,  we  are  going  to  Cuba  m  the  Terror,  i  ou  know  it  is  her 
trial  trip, 'and  the  government  has  proposed,  as  a  condition  of  her 
acceptance,  her  getting  around  Cuba  and  back  in  a  month.'' 

*^  I  wouldn't  like  to  go  to  sea  in  a  vessel  intended  for  the  govern- 
ment," said  Mr.  McFlusterer,  cautiously. 

"Tilt,  tut,  tut  I"  said  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  "she's  as  safe  as  a  yacht, 
and  if  Mr.  Puncherry,  who  built  her  and  knows  all  about  her,  is 
willing  to  risk  it,  I  don't  see  why  we  shouldn't;  he  wrote  this  morn- 
ing to  invite  us,  and  I  opened  the  letter,  though  it  was  addressed  to 

you." 

Mr.  P.  T.  was  sorely  discomfited.  "And  may  I  ask  why  you 
opened  my  letter?"  he  asked. 

"  Well,  you  see,  if  I  hadn't,  you  might  have  kept  back  his  invitation. 
I  had  three  reasons  for  accepting  before  you  saw  it,"  she  went  on,  in  a 
relenting  spirit,  "  but,  as  two  were  on  your  account  and  only  one  on 
mine,  you  mustn't  be  angry." 

"  And  what  may  they  be,  madam  ?"  (When  particularly  refractory, 
Mr.  P.  T.  addressed  his  wife  as  Madam.) 

"  First,  you'll  look  so  well  in  a  yachting-suit,"  she  said,  checking 
off  the  reasons  on  her  fingers ;  "  secondly,  you  will  really  save  a  great 
deal  of  money  in  household  bills,  etc.,  by  our  being  at  some  one  else's 
expense ;  and,  thirdly,  PU  escape  the  cold  weather,  which  I  failed  to  do 
in  Washington.  You  see  Pm  influenced  exactly  twice  as  much  on  your 
account  as  on  my  own." 

"  It  is  very  kind  of  you,  indeed,"  he  said,  grimly ;  but  then  the 
clause  about  the  expenditure  was  not  without  its  weight. 

Indeed,  when  Mr.  McFlusterer  came  to  think  over  the  matter 
calmly,  the  plan  develo})ed  its  advantages.  He  was  carrying  an 
enormous  line  of  stocks,  and  this  might  be  unloaded  on  a  suffering 
community  with  less  suspicion,  and  therefore  with  greater  ease,  during 
an  absence,  than  if  he  were  present  in  New  York.  His  very  absence 
would  give  a  fictitious  strength  to  the  market,  and  therefore  might 
supply  what  he  had  long  been  looking  for, — namely,  a  market  to 
unload  ou.  The  street  would  say,  all  must  be  well,  when  the  Razor 
was  satisfied  to  take  his  ease  for  a  month.  The  tone  of  things,  which 
had  been  sagging  downwards,  in  sympathy  perhaps  with  the  vague 
rumors  from  China,  might  rally.  Then,  besides,  his  wife  was  so 
continually  harping  on  the  necessity  of  an  interval  of  genial  weather 
between  the  Arctic  cold  of  winter  and  the  torrid  heat  of  summer,  that 
he  had  become  impressed  with  the  idea  that  she  did  need  it. 

Thirdly,  Mr.  P.  T.  had  secretly  been  weighing  in  his  mind  that  one 
solitar)^  form  of  indulgence  a  wealthy  New  York  business-man  permits 
himself, — I  mean  the  purchase  of  a  yacht.  This  trip  might  save  him, 
by  its  experiences,  the  extravagance  of  getting  one. 

All  said  and  done,  he  would  go, — as  in  any  case  he  would  have 
been  obliged  to  go.  Madam  directing. 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  17 


CHAPTER  VI. 


"  Coming  events  cast  their  shadows  before,"  and  the  vague  sur- 
uises  about  the  advent  of  the  Chinese  fleet  were  not  unfounded.  The 
mrest  indicator,  the  stock  market,  believed  it  before  the  public  did, 
md  had  been  growing  continually  weaker  for  the  past  three  months, 
rhe  great  armada,  in  fact,  had  sailed,  and  was  creeping  on^from  port 
;o  port,  often  a  vessel  going  backwards  as  if  to  China,  and  then  turning 
ibout  and  continuing  her  course,  each  one  drawing  nearer  little  by  little 
its  objective  point. 

Gladly  would  I  describe  in  full  the  incidents  leading  to  the  com- 
missioner's departure,  as  well  as  the  daily  occurrences  of  the  voyage,  but 
space  forbids.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  poor  Wang-Chi-Poo,  when  it 
finally  came  to  starting,  would  fain  have  renounced  his  rash  determina- 
tion. He  found  the  desire  of  ennobling  his  grandmother  weakening 
in  exact  proportion  as  the  time  of  his  departure  approached.  At  the 
last  moment  it  is  doubtful  whether  anything  would  have  induced  him 
to  sail,  were  it  not  that  his  two  millions  of  chop-dollars  had  already 
been  passed  in.  Besides,  he  was  wroth  that  his  wives  and  family 
3id  not  take  his  departure  more  to  heart.  On  the  contrary,  his  mission 
was  so  extraordinary  that  it  seemed  rather  to  amuse  them ;  and  as  for 
his  children,  they  blew  their  butterflies  with  increased  assiduity  into  the 
air,  just  as  if  nothing  in  particular  was  going  to  happen. 

Long  and  wearily  that  last  night  he  had  stood  in  his  garden  and 
looked  at  the  artificial  stork ;  long  the  artificial  stork  had  stared  at  him. 
Then  he  went  to  the  temple  hard  by,  and  passed  two  hours  in  silent 
adoration  of  his  ancestors. 

The  next  morning  he  made  propitiatory  ofierings  in  the  same  pagoda, 
and  burnt  innumerable  little  pieces  of  paper  to  propitiate  the  Dragon 
of  the  sea, — that  horrible  demon  who  causes  the  waves  to  swell  when 
he  is  angry,  and  the  winds  to  roar  as  they  emerge  from  his  mouth. 
In  due  time  he  repaired  to  his  ship,  and  truth  compels  me  to  relate  that 
when,  at  the  moment  of  embarking,  the  boiler  suddenly  let  off  steam, 
AYang-Chi-Poo  jumped  from  the  poop  in  an  agony  of  terror,  thinking 
perhaps  that  this  same  demon  was  coming  on  board  through  the  funnel. 

Upon  several  occasions  too,  during  the  voyage,  Wang-Chi-Poo  came 
near  setting  his  cabin  and  with  it  the  ship  on  fire,  by  burning  little  joss- 
papers  in  propitiation  of  the  Sea-Dragon  ;  but,  as  he  was  firmly  persuaded 
that  only  by  such  pious  rites  could  disaster  be  averted,  he  concerned 
himself  little  about  the  lesser  evil  of  a  conflagration. 

It  may  be  questioned,  how  so  large  a  fleet  could  have  sailed  without 
attracting  more  than  "  vague  suspicions,"  even  with  the  extraordinary 
precautions  that  had  been  -taken.  They  had  sailed,  as  we  know,  in 
different  detachments,  under  sealed  orders,  and  to  far  different  points 
and  at  different  times.  It  was  rather  the  concentration  of  these  vessels  in 
harbors  of  the  Western  Hemisphere  that  aroused  attention,  and  then 
it  was  too  late  for  the  United  States  to  guard  against  them.  Indeed,  it 
was  left  to  America  herself  to  bring  about  the  climax,  for,  when  the 
movements  of  the  fleet  could  be  no  longer  doubted,  a  cablegram  was 
2 


2g  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

despatched  to  China  stating  that,  if  these  vessels  continued  to  approach, 
their  presence  would  be  considered  a  casus  beUi. 

I  am  sorry  to  confess  that  this  message  was  dictated  in  a  spirit  of 
bluif ;  and  when  to  this  an  insolent  reply  was  received,  America  awoke 
to  the  disagreeable  realization  that  she  had  a  war  on  her  hands  with  a 
people  whom  it  was  no  honor  to  vanquish,  yet  who  were  better  prepared 
to  take  the  initiative  than  she  was  to  defend  herself. 

As  for  the  vessel  that  bore  Wang-Chi-Poo,  she  had  passed  around 
the  Horn,  and  it  was  really  her  arrival  at  Rio  that  inspired  the  telegram 
from  the  State  Department.  Throwing  off  the  cloak  here,  as  to  her 
intentions,  she  joined  the  squadron  previously  mentioned  as  cruising  in 
South  American  waters,  and  boldly  sailed  up  the  coast.  It  was  exactly 
one  month  after  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  sailed  for  Cuba  that 
the  fleet  skirted  that  island  and  approached  the  shores  of  Florida.  As 
they  drew  nearer,  Wang-Chi-Poo's  curiosity,  which  had  been  steadily 
increasing,  rose  to  fever-heat,  and  Taonsu,  who  had  come  out  as  inter- 
preter, was  kept  busy  answering  his  questions  about  the  country. 

Land  might  even  now  be  sighted  at  any  moment,  and  since  early 
morning  "Wang-Chi-Poo  had  been  eagerly  searching  the  horizon  with 
his  glass.     At  last  he  closed  the  instrument  with  a  gesture  of  impatience. 

"  Thou  hast  said,  O  Taonsu,  that  this  land  is  one  of  many  laws,  but 
of  little  inclination  to  abide  by  them.     How  many  laws  has  it  ?" 

"  It  has  many  in  name,  Great  Excellency,  but  only  two  laws  are 
rigorously  enforced." 

"And  what  are  they,  O  Taonsu?" 

"  The  laws  of  supply  and  demand.  These  laws  are  harsher  than 
even  our  criminal  code,  for  they  grind  the  poor  to  powder,  and  heap 
the  rich  with  riches  compared  with  which  the  wealth  of  our  great 
Emperor  is  as  naught." 

"  But  I  thought  this  country  was  governed  by  the  people." 

"  In  name,  again,  Great  Excellency,  so  that  the  people  may  be 
ground  down  the  more." 

"  But  who  grinds  them  down,  O  Taonsu  ?  I  have  heard  that  this 
land  was  a  republic,  which  I  take  to  mean  a  beast  with  no  head  and 
many  tails,  meaning  by  that  a  country  that  sits  down  on  its  ruling 
classes." 

"Stay,  Great  Excellency,  thou  dost  not  understand  the  system. 
There  is  a  ruling  class,  but  it  is  not,  as  with  us,  the  official  class.  On 
the  contrary,  the  class  I  speak  of  rules  the  official  class,  being  composed 
of  kings, — Kings  of  the  Highways,  they  are  called, — and  all  products, 
even  those  necessary  to  sustain  life,  must  pay  them  tribute.  Under 
these  are  two  lower  grades,  called  respectively  '  Directors'  and  '  Stock- 
holders.' The  last,  however,  are  held  in  little  account.  Another  kind 
of  ruler  is  the  '  Silver  King,'  and  still  another  the  *  Coal  Baron  :'  the 
one  owns  the  silver-mines  and  makes  the  nation  take  his  ore  at  enormous 
premiums  for  chop-dollars,  and  the  last  controls  men's  bodies  through, 
their  love  of  warmth  and  comfort.  The  official  class  is  often  but  the 
creature  of  these  kings,  and,  though  they  are  always  prating  of  the 
rights  of  the  poor  man,  they  are  continually  wronging  him  by  helping 
the  rich  to  grow  still  richer." 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST,  19 

"How  SO,  OTaonsu?" 

"  By  voting  the  rich  special  charters  and  privileges  in  which  they 
ilso  share  in  the  profits,  not  always  receiving  their  pay  direct,  but 
hrough  a  species  of  middleman,  called  a  'lobbyist.'" 

"  But  this  four-year  emperor,  is  he  really  of  no  account  to  prevent 
his  state  of  things  ?" 

"  Great  Excellency,  his  only  function  is  to  shake  hands  with  all  his 
ubjects,  so  that  they  may  feel  happy  and  comfortable  and  never  notice 
low  things  are  going.  I  have  seen  one  of  these  emperors  shake  hands 
7ith  fifty  thousand  people  in  one  day  I'' 

*'  And  that  is  why  they  have  to  choose  a  fresh  one  every  four  years, 
—he  gets  worn  out  ?" 

"  That  is  why.  Great  Excellency ;  oftentimes  he  does  not  last  so 
ong." 

"  But  this  '  progress,'  that  we  hear  so  much  about  in  Western 
ountries,  what  means  it,  Taonsu  ? — that  affairs  go  forward  ?" 

"  It  is  rather  that  they  go  '  round.'  " 

"  Taonsu,  thou  makest  my  heart  sick  with  what  thou  tellest  me ; 
•f  a  truth,  this  land  is  upside-down.     Ha !  but  what  is  that?     A  sail ! 

,  sail  r 

It  was  indeed  a  sail  that  they  had  overhauled, — if  a  long  line  of 
moke  against  the  far  edge  of  the  horizon  could  be  so  denominated, — the 
Irst  sail  they  had  sighted  for  several  days.  What  made  that  particular 
teamer  take  that  particular  direction  was  one  of  those  things  that  could 
>nly  be  explained  by  an  inscrutable  Providence  which  brings  the  ex- 
remes  together.  To  be  accurate,  if  neither  the  fleet  nor  the  steamer 
Itered  their  courses,  the  steamer  in  proper  time  would  cross  their  bows. 
)he  was  evidently  taking  the  most  direct  route  from  the  Queen  of  the 
Antilles  to  Florida ;  but  at  last,  as  if  not  liking  the  look  of  things,  she 
Itered  her  course  in  such  a  way  as  to  steer  for  the  nearest  point.  Key 
N'estj  turning  her  stern  instead  of  her  side  to  the  fleet  in  order  to  reach 
hat  port. 

Having  yet  a  start  of  some  seven  miles,  and  barely  fifteen  to  go,  she 
70uld  in  all  likelihood  reach  her  haven,  could  she  sail  one  mile  to  the 
nemy's  two.  As  if  in  doubt  of  this,  however,  she  was  evidently  put- 
iug  on  steam  to  her  utmost  capacity,  and  crowding  on  all  the  canvas 
he  could  carry. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Off  the  coast  of  Florida,  like  the  dot  to  an  i,  lies  the  island  of  Key 
West,  and  connected  with  the  island  by  a  long  causeway  is  a  giant 
brtress.  This  fortress,  lying  midway  as  it  does  between  Cuba  and  the 
Jnited  States,  commands,  on  the  south,  the  approach  to  the  whole 
lastern  seaboard.  This  fortress,  vast  and  stately,  is  garrisoned  by  one 
nan.  The  utter  loneliness  of  Sergeant  McKenna's  life  I  can  compare 
o  nothing  but  that  of  a  state  prisoner  sentenced  to  solitary  confine- 
nent. 

Sergeant  McKenna  was  both  garrison  and  commander  rolled  into 
)ne.    Sergeant  McKenna,  being  a  soldier  every  inch  of  him,  had  a  high 


20  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

sense  of  his  duties.  Sergeant  McKenna  tried  to  fulfil  in  his  one  person 
the  duties  of  the  various  personages  he  represented.  Thus,  he  would 
keep  guard,  and,  when  the  usual  four  hours  were  up  and  he  was  com- 
pletely exhausted,  he  would  relieve  himself  by  a  fresh  guardrmount. 
To  do  the  honors  of  the  garrisonto  himself  as  commander-in-chief  was 
difficult,  but  at  stated  intervals  he  would  call  out  the  guard  to  himself, 
and  regularly  on  Sundays  he  would  have  dress  inspection  of  himself. 

Evening  parade,  too,  was  seldom  neglected;  but  the  crowning 
achievement  of  Sergeant  McKenna's  efforts  appropriately  to  garrison 
single-handed  one  of  the  greatest  fortresses  of  his  country  was,  strange 
to  say,  accom])lished  with — his  foot. 

Sergeant  McKenna,  by  an  ingenious  arrangement  of  strings  and  pul- 
leys touched  at  the  proper  moment  by  his  foot,  managed  to  let  off  the 
sunset  gun  and  to  haul  down  the  standard,  and  this,  too,  without  leaving 
his  beat  as  sentinel  the  while.  To  a  casual  observer  who  noticed  this 
threefold  performance, — who  saw  the  smoke  circling  upward  from  one 
part  of  the  fort,  the  stately  stars  and  stripes  descending  the  flag-staff 
in  another,  and  yet  who  noticed  the  soldierly  figure  of  the  sentinel  un- 
concernedly pacing  his  beat  on  still  a  third  part  of  the  fortress, — 
nothing  would  have  seemed  amiss.  He  would  therefore  have  been 
ignorant  at  what  a  cost  in  time,  thought,  and  ingenuity  this  had  been 
accomplished.  It  is  even  stated  that  a  Congressman  once  sailing  past 
was  struck  by  the  lavish  extravagance  of  Uncle  Samuel  in  maintain- 
ing a  garrison  at  this  distant  point,  and  on  his  return  to  Washington 
demanded  an  investigation.  A  commission  certainly  went  down  with 
a  salary  at  the  rate  of  five  thousand  dollars  per  year  for  each  mem- 
ber, with  a  secretary  in  addition  at  two  thousand  and  a  stenographer 
at  fifteen  hundred.  Collectively  they  sat  on  poor  Sergeant  McKenna, 
and,  since  they  could  not  very  well  cut  him  off,  they  cut  off  his  powder. 

From  that  day  Sergeant  McKenna's  spirits  began  to  flag.  Sergeant 
McKenna,  though  garrisoning  the  fortress,  boarded  at  Mrs.  Ayres's. 
Mrs.  Ayres  lived  in  the  village  of  Key  West,  and  the  fortress,  as  we 
know,  was  connected  with  the  village  by  a  bridge.  This  bridge  was 
some  six  hundred  feet  long,  and,  when  the  tide  was  in,  the  fortress  was 
an  island.  Now,  the  boys  of  Key  West,  quick  to  notice  the  changed 
demeanor  of  the  sergeant,  would  wait  at  the  town  end  of  the  bridge 
to  observe  his  comings  or  goings  to  and  from  Mrs.  Ayres's,  and,  as  is 
the  wont  of  boys,  would  chaff  him,  shout  at  him,  ask  him  how  the 
garrison  was  feeling,  and  how  much  Uncle  Sam  allowed  for  powder. 

At  first  Sergeant  McKenna  treated  these  insults  with  the  contempt 
they  deserved ;  he  would  unlock  or  relock,  as  the  case  might  be,  the 
padlock  of  the  wooden  gate  on  the  bridge,  deposit  the  key  of  the  fort 
m  his  pocket,  and  go  his  way.  But  once,  when  the  youths,  growing 
bolder,  scaled  this  wooden  gate  and  attempted  to  carry  the  fortress  by 
storm,  Sergeant  McKenna  sallied  forth,  charged  suddenly  upon  them, 
and  vowed  heM  fill  them  so  full  of  shot  that  their  mothers  wouldn't 
know  them.  Then  the  boys'  feelings  underwent  a  sudden  change,  and, 
from  contempt,  they  began  to  feel  respect  for  the  sergeant.  As  time 
went  on,  they  even  got  to  lend  him  assistance  in  cleaning  the  guns,  and 
keepmg  up  the  appearance  of  things  generally  about  the  fort,  actually 


A  DREAM  OF  CONqUfiST.  21 

at  last  paying  out  of  their  own  pockets  for  the  gun-polish  and  the 
blacking,  as  any  recent  visitor  to  Key  West  will  testify.  Nevertheless, 
in  spite  of  these  evidences  of  devotion,  the  sergeant  was  growing  morose. 
He,  too,  had  long  felt  it  in  his  bones  that  war  was  imminent,  and  as 
soon  as  war  was  declared  (though  no  one  believed  that  actual  combat 
would  result)  he  laid  in  as  large  a  supply  of  powder  as  his  slender 
means  admitted  of,  further  utilizing  the  boys  in  training  them  to  load 
and  manoeuvre  the  cannon. 

Each  day,  after  returning  from  Mrs.  Ayres^s  he  would  sweep  the 
horizon  with  his  glass,  and  would  watch  for  the  enemy  of  whose  arrival 
his  poor  old  bones  had  warned  him  long  before  his  government  had. 

Sergeant  McKenna  was  not  only  losing  spirits,  but  was  losing  his 
flesh,  and  his  bones  were  about  all  that  was  left  of  him.  Smile  as  you 
may,  there  is  something  grand  in  the  spectacle  of  this  poor  old  man 
standing  by  the  government  that  had  so  cruelly  neglected  him. 

Tattered  and  torn,  hungry  and  sorrowful,  the  butt  of  ridicule  for  all 
men,  he  :  and  yet  there  was  an  unexpended  balance  of  $16,636,362.71 
belonging  to  our  Little  Log-Rolling  Creeks  !  The  late  patriotic  demands 
on  his  pocket  had  made  serious  inroads  on  his  stomach  ;  he  paid  half 
board  and  got  half  fare  at  Mrs.  Ayres's.  A  reef  in  his  belt  for  break- 
fast, a  long  walk  for  dinner,  and  a  sweep  of  the  glass  for  supper  would 
have  constituted  before  long  his  sole  apology  for  diet.     But  an  end  was 

coming, — an  end  was  coming  soon. 

******** 

It  is  a  w^arm  and  balmy  afternoon, — one  of  those  soft,  sensuous 
days  when  the  sky  and  ocean  seem  to  meet  in  a  long  lover-like  embrace. 
Far  to  the  south  lies  Cuba,  and  far  away  behind  a  yellowish  haze  that 
may  be  water,  or  may  be  sky,  so  indistinct  it  looks.  Sergeant  McKenna 
thinks  he  sees  something.  His  eyes,  however,  in  general  sympathy 
with  his  physical  condition,  are  a  little  weak,  so  he  takes  another  look, 
first  wiping  well  the  glass ;  then  at  last  from  out  of  the  haze  he  sees 
the  Chinese  fleet  coming,  preceded  by  the  strange  steamer,  all  with  their 
sails  set  and  gleaming,  and  with  long  lines  of  smoke  standing  out  be- 
hind them. 

Sergeant  McKenna,  warned  by  his  bones  that  the  on-comers  must 
be  the  long-expected  foe,  summons  the  boys  from  the  village  forthwith, 
and  makes  them  a  stirring  speech.  He  tells  them  how  much  the 
government  has  done  for  them,  and  how  happy  they  ought  to  be  for 
this  opportunity  to  serve  it:  stating  that,  if  they  will  accurately 
obey  his  orders,  they  can  yet  strike  a  blow  for  American  honor; 
that  heretofore  their  efforts  had  been  principally  directed  in  keeping 
things  in  repair  about  the  fort,  but  now  the  country  demanded  a  return 
for  the  privilege  which  it  had  so  magnanimously  allowed  them.  Then 
he  touches  upon  the  youths  of  Lexington,  and,  after  seeing  them  load 
the  guns  and  close  the  gates,  he  sends  one  of  them  up  the  flag-staff  to 
nail  the  standard  to  the  mast. 

All  this  had  consumed  some  fifty  minutes,  and  in  the  mean  time 
the  fleet  had  drawn  quite  close,  with  the  chase  still  nearer  in. 

To  a  careful  observer,  the  steamer  in  the  lead  would  appear  to  be 
laboring  badly,  and  evidently  trying  to  double  a  ledge  of  rocks  ex- 


22  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.* 

tending  out  from  the  fortress,  and  so  around  into  the  harbor  which  the 
fortress  protected.  Then  at  the  moment  when  she  would  naturally  turn 
and  go  around  this  ledge  of  rocks,  she  puts  down  her  helm,  but,  owing 
to  some  defect  of  machinery,  or  to  the  severe  strain  her  flight  has 
subjected  her  to,  her  steering-gear  fails  to  work.  There  is  much  con- 
fusion and  swearing  on  deck ;  a  stout  man  gives  contradictory  orders, 
and. a  lady  faints.  At  last,  however,  she — the  vessel,  not  the  lady — does 
"come  round,'*  but,  coming  around  too  far,  is  unable  to  be  stopped, 
turning  when  she  has  once  got  started,  like  a  balky  horse,  a  wilful 
child,  or  a  wound-up  machine,  and  gaining  in  speed  and  obstinacy  till 
she  is  whirling  around  on  a  pivot  like  a  thing  possessed.  It  was  at  this 
moment  of  all  others,  when  her  broadside  was  presented  full,  and  at 
a  distance  of  barely  six  hundred  yards,  that — either  astounded  at  her 
behavior  or  unable  to  contain  their  impatience  any  longer — the  boys  in 
the  fort  "  let  drive.'* 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

DuEiNG  the  pursuit,  Wang-Chi-Poo  had  been  standing  on  the  deck, 
regarding  the  vessel  they  had  been  so  quickly  overhauling. 

"  So  thou  thinkest  it  is  one  of  their  new  junks  intended  for  the 
navy  ?"  he  exclaimed,  turning  to  Taonsu. 

"  Great  Excellency,  there  is  no  doubt  on  that  point ;  she  is  now 
returning  from  her  trial  trip  around  Cuba,  as  it  was  telegraphed  us  at 
Rio  she  would  do,  by  our  agents  in  the  United  States.  Her  description 
exactly  tallies  with  this  paper."  And  the  secretary  looked  at  a  sheet 
whereon  was  written  a  full  description  of  the  Terror,  her  dimensions, 
the  guns  she  was  to  carry,  the  conditions  of  her  acceptance,  her 
machinery,  and  particularly  an  improvement  on  the  Kunstadter  patent 
screw  which  was  intended  to  give  greater  rapidity  in  turning. 

"  It  seems  to  me,  then,"  said  Wang-Chi-Poo, "  that  we  have  little  to 
fear  from  their  fleets  if  perchance  they  resemble  her ;  she  is  too  weak  to 
fight,  too  slow  to  run  away, — and  this  last  we  have  proved  without 
firing  a  gun." 

"  Great  Excellency,  that  is  the  reason  I  counselled  thee  not  to  fire 
on  her.  Had  we  done  so,  it  would  only  have  proved  the  weakness 
of  her  armor.  As  we  have  now  tested  the  slowness  of  her  engines 
as  compared  with  those  of  the  whole  fleet,  you  can  fire  when  vou 
like."  -^ 

The  commissioner  was  on  the  point  of  following  out  this  suggestion 
when  the  fortress  opened  fire  itself. 

The  astonishment  of  Wang-Chi-Poo  at  this  unexpect^  occurrence 
took  off  his  attention  from  the  object  of  their  pursuit,  and  was  only 
equalled  by  his  rage. 

"  9  Taonsu,"  he  exclaimed,  turning  angrily  to  that  official,  "  thou 
hast  misinformed  me ;  thou  didst  tell  me  there  was  no  fortress  fully 
equipped  the  entire  length  of  this  coast." 

Taonsu  was  himself  astounded.  "  Great  Excellency,  I  must  admit 
that  It  is  strange.  Perchance  this  is  the  one  solitary  exception  to  the 
rule.    But  see,  Great  Excellency,  they  have  saved  us  our  powder.    They 


•  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  23 

have  sunk  their  own  junk,  and  not  only  settled  the  question  of  the 
efficacy  of  her  armor,  but  also  that  of  the  Kunstadter  turning-gear, 
which  they  are  trying  on  a  vessel  called  the  Nina,  so  as  to  apply  it  to 
their  other  new  ships." 

It  was  too  true.  The  shot,  while  rattling  off  the  sides  of  the  Chi- 
nese fleet  like  peas  off  a  plank  fence,  had  perforated  the  iron  plates  of 
the  Terror,  and  all  that  remained  in  evidence  of  her  now  was  a  small 
boat  containing  three  people  rowing  frantically  on  the  waste  of  waters. 

Wang-Chi-Poo's  blood  was  up. 

"It  will  never  do  to  leave  this  place  in  our  rear;  it  must  be 
carried,"  he  said ;  and  the  fleet  continued  their  advance.  After  the  first 
outburst,  the  fortress  had  subsided  into  a  suspicious  quiet.  As  they 
closely  examined  it  through  the  glass,  men's  heads,  as  it  appeared, 
showed  over  the  ramparts,  and  the  glitter  of  steel  could  be  seen  as  of 
bayonets.  The  fleet,  led  by  the  flag-ship,  continued  on,  opening  fire  as 
it  came ;  still  no  sound,  no  response,  after  that  first  discharge. 

The  marksmanship  of  the  fleet  was  admirable,  and  after  each  shot 
huge  splinters  of  stone  rose  in  the  air,  or,  if  the  projectile  were  a  shell, 
great  sliowers  of  dust. 

"  Of  a  truth,"  exclaimed  Wang-Chi-Poo,  "  this  is  most  mysterious. 
Perchance  they  wish  to  draw  us  into  some  monstrous  trap.  What 
counsellest  thou,  O  Taonsu,  thou  who  knowest  what  these  foreign  devils 
be?  Perchance  it  were  better  that  thou  took  the  boats  and  carried  the 
place  by  assault.  I  will  remain  here  with  the  fleet,  to  see  that  no  evil 
betide  them." 

"  Rather  let  us  stop  and  pick  up  the  fugitives  from  the  steam-junk," 
said  Taonsu,  who  little  relished  the  proposal  of  his  master.  "  The  rest 
of  the  fleet,  having  no  precious  life  like  thine  on  board,  can  carry  this 
accursed  fortress  as  they  will." 

"  Thy  advice  is  good,  O  Taonsu.  It  is  the  part  of  a  great  com- 
mander to  guard  properly  his  own  safety.  Moreover,  it  is  only  humane 
to  succor  the  afflicted." 

In  view  of  this  magnanimous  proposal,  the  flag-ship  stopped,  leaving 
the  rest  of  the  fleet  to  continue  on. 

The  fort  by  this  time  was  pretty  badly  damaged,  and  its  capture 
would  not  seem  a  difficult  operation  ;  still  the  bayonets  flashed  from  the 
ramparts,  and  the  heads  of  numerous  men  showed  mysteriously  above 
the  walls,  for  the  sergeant  had  skilfully  placed  such  cannon-balls  as  he 
might  not  require,  at  various  points  of  vantage,  and  alongside  of  -each 
a  musket,  upright.     Yet  the  same  suspicious  quiet  reigned. 

The  shape  of  the  fort  was  a  pentagon,  and  the  vessels  as  they 
approached  finally  fronted  a  new  side.  Then  another  sudden  discharge 
belched  forth.  To  be  sure,  the  fire  did  little  damage,  and  what  few 
shots  struck  the  vessels  rattled,  as  I  have  intimated,  on  their  iron  plates 
like  peas  shot  from  a  glass  tube.  Still,  the  manner  of  defence  was 
peculiar, — these  hysterical  outbursts,  succeeded  by  fits  of  remorse,  as 
it  were.  One  more  discharge  only  there  was,  and  then  the  boats  were 
manned  and  lowered. 


24  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 


CHAPTEB  IX. 


The  phenomenon  wliicli  so  surprised  the  invaders  would  have  been 
easily  uudei-stood  had  they  been. aware  of  the  reduced  condition  of  the 
garrison.  Sergeant  McKenna,  short-handed  as  he  was,  could  not  direct 
the  cannon,  and  was  obliged  to  wait  till  tlie  fleet  got  opposite  each  suc- 
cessive battery  of  guns.  Sergeant  McKenna  was  weak  with  mucii  fast- 
ing, and  saw  with  dismay  his  youthful  garrison  falling  away  around 
him.  When  the  boats  left  the  fleet,  he  gave  orders  that  the  firing  should 
cease,  and,  calling  the  boys  that  yet  remained  alive  to  his  assistance, 
they  dragged  a  small  swivel  loaded  with  canister  up  to  the  gates  of 
entrance.  The  sergeant  knew,  from  the  direction  the  boats  were  taking, 
that  the  landing  would  be  made  on  the  bridge,  and  he  directed  the 
swivel  in  such  a  way  as  to  command  this. 

Then,  attaching  to  the  gun  one  of  his  old  arrangements  of  strings 
and  pulleys  by  which  it  would  be  discharged  on  the  bursting  in  of  the 
gates,  he  sadly  closed  them,  and  marched  out  with  the  remnants  of  his 
plucky  battalion. 

Sergeant  McKenna,  I  have  heard,  has  since  been  severely  criticised 
for  not  having  held  on  longer  to  the  fort  which  his  government  had 
placed  in  his  charge.  Truth  compels  me  to  say  that  I  think  these 
criticisms  unjust.  Sergeant  McKenna  "held  the  fort''  till  his  garrison 
was  decimated,  and  only  left  because  the  sturdy  boys  would  not  leave 
without  him. 

As  for  Wang-Chi-Poo,  as  we  know,  he  had  stopped  behind  to 
pick  up  the  survivors' from  the  sunken  steamer.  Nevertheless,  the  par- 
ticulars of  the  assault  had  been  signalled  back  to  him  in  all  its  details, 
including  the  terrible  sacrifice  of  life  that  met  the  invaders  when  they 
burst  in  the  gates,  and  after  all  the  retreat  of  but  one  man  and  half  a 
dozen  boys.  There  was  evidently  something  unnatural  about  such  a 
defence,  and  Wang-Chi-Poo  stands  talking  with  his  Jidus  Achates  over 
the  extraordinary  occurrence : 

"  Of  a  truth,  O  Taonsu,  this  is  a  strange  land,  where  they  confide 
their  fortresses  to  children.  It  passes  my  comprehension,  however, 
that  the  demon  who  must  have  assisted  them  did  not  provide  them 
\yith  guns  to  perforate  our  ships'  sides.  By  the  bones  of  my  grand- 
mother, we  must  accept  the  combat  as  a  happy  augury,  since,  with  all 
their  commotion,  they  have  only  sunk  their  own  steamer.  But  hush ! 
^what  is  that?" 

And,  as  they  listened,  a  long  wail  rising  over  the  cadence  of  the 
waves  was  wafted  to  them  from  the  shore. 

"  It  is  the  grief  of  the  female  devils  weeping  for  their  offspring. 
Great  Excellency,  and  they  will  not  be  comforted,  because  they  are  not." 

Wang-Chi-Poo  pondered  deeply. 

"  By  the  way,  O  Taonsu,  talking  about  female  devils,  didst  thou 
not  mention  that  one  was  picked  up  in  the  boat  of  the  sunken  junk? 
My  attention  was  so  sorely  distracted  by  this  accursed  fortress  that  I 
did  not  notice  the  survivors  when  they  were  brought  on  board." 

"  Yes,  Great  Excellency :  it  is  now  six  years  since  I  beheld  one 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  25 

of  their  white-skinned  women,  but  I'm  sure  a  female  devil  was  among 
the  saved.     She  is  now  in  the  cabin  along  with  her  two  mates/' 

"  Have  them  all  up,  O  Taonsu  :  I  would  feast  my  curiosity  on  these 
strange  beings." 

Taonsu  gave  the  necessary  orders;  and  in  a  couple  of  minutes 
afterwards  Mrs.  McFlusterer  in  a  dead  faint,  Mr.  P.  T.  in  a  fancy 
yachting-suit,  and  Mr.  Puncherry  in  a  towering  rage  and  a  profuse 
perspiration,  were  before  their  Eastern  captors. 

Wang-Chi-Poo  bowed  low,  brushed  the  dust  from  the  seat  of  a 
cane-bottomed  chair,  and  then  brought  Mrs.  McFlusterer  back  to  life 
by  tickling  her  facetiously  under  the  chin  with  his  queue. 

"  Tell  them,"  he  said  at  last,  turning  to  his  interpreter,  "  that  I 
find  the  she-devil  fair,  and  ask  them  to  what  class  in  life  they  belong." 

Mr.  P.  T.,  with  the  idea  of  a  heavy  ransom  in  his  mind,  was  in 
the  act  of  explaining  that  they  were  poor  gentlemen  travelling  for  their 
health,  when  he  was  interrupted  by  a  volley  of  expletives  from  Mr. 
Puncherry,  whose  fat  leg  one  of  the  monkey-like  crew  took  occasion 
to  pinch  as  he  was  sitting  down  on  a  seat. 

As  for  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  she  looked  at  Wang-Chi-Poo,  and  in- 
stinctively regretted  that  she  could  not  have  had  him  at  a  dinner  as  a 
curiosity  for  her  friends  on  the  Avenue,  In  some  respects  she  thought 
him  a  handsome  man,  and  his  embroidered  tunic  would  make  such  a 
lovely  tea-gown ;  nevertheless,  she  was  palpitating  with  terror  as  she 
reflected  on  the  predicament  she  was  placed  in. 

Mr.  Puncherry  was  the  first  to  demand  an  explanation.  "  Will  you 
tell  me,"  he  asked  of  Taonsu,  "  what  the  devil  this  all  means,  that  a 
vessel  intended  for  the  United  States  government  should  be  pursued 
on  the  high  seas  by  a  lot  of  cut-throats  from  China  ?"  And  Mr.  Pun- 
cherry stretched  out  his  legs  and  folded  his  hands  as  if  he  had  pro- 
pounded an  unanswerable  conundrum. 

"  It  means,  O  inhabitant  of  the  West,  that  the  righteous  claims  of 
his  Celestial  Majesty  having  failed  to  meet  with  recognition,  Ave  have 
come  at  the  head  of  this  mighty  fleet  to  enforce  them." 

Mr.  Puncherry  drew  a  long  whistle,  and  looked  at  the  "  Razor," 
and  the  "  Bazor"  looked  at  him.  Mrs,  McFlusterer  raised  her  hands 
to  her  brow  and  gave  vent  to  an  hysterical  sob.  "  Oh,  Percival,  oh, 
Mr.  Puncherry,  this  is  what  comes  of  never  having  stopped  in  a  port 
during  our  trip !     China  has  declared  war," 

"  How  the  mischief  could  I  stop  in  a  port,  when  I  only  had  a  month 
to  make  the  trip  in?"  said  Mr.  Puncherry.  "Around  to  Cuba  and 
back  is  thirty-seven  hundred  miles.  I  had  to  steam  a  hundred  and 
twenty  miles  a  day  to  do  it.-  I  consider  it  a  great  feat,  a  really  great 
feat,  and  never  to  have  been  obliged  to  put  into  port  during  so  long  a 
time  is  more  than  most  ships  in  our  navy  could  boast." 

Wang-Chi-Poo  was  not  a  cruel  captor,  and  the  grief  of  the  lady 
touched  his  heart. 

"  Tell  her,  O  Taonsu,  I  find  her  fair,  and  I  like  her  none  the  less 
because  her  nails  are  cut ;  tell  her,  though  her  feet,  as  compared  with 
our  daughters',  are  as  the  blades  of  paddle-wheels,  they  are  not  uncouth 
in  shape;  tell  her,  therefore,  to  curb  her  sorrow,  and,  though  many 


26 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 


love  her,  for  she  resembleth  my  grandmother,  in  form,  spirit,  and  beauty, 
very  much."  Then  Wang-Chi-Poo  subsided  into  his  cane-bottomed 
chair,  arranged  the  folds  of  his  robes  in  what  he  considered  a  becoming 
style,'  and  proceeded  to  ogle  the  lady  over  his  fan. 

Adequately  to  portray  the  feelings  of  Mrs.  McFlusterer  as  Taonsu 
translated  this  speech  literally,  defies  my  powers  of  description ;  indig- 
nant protest  struggled  for  supremacy  with  rage  and  indignation,  as  she 
ghired  at  Wang-Chi-Poo,  who,  taking  it  all  for  approval, 'sat  in  his 
chair,  like  one  of  those  squat  Chmese  figures,  smiling  and  nodding  his 
head. 

At  last  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  giving  up  the  mandarin,  somewhat  illogi- 
cally  turned  upon  her  husband. 

"  If  it  had  not  been  for  you,"  she  cried,  with  a  great  gasp,  "  we 
would  not  be  here  now;  it  was  you  that  brought  me,  you,  you, 
YOU !" 

"  Me  ?"  said  Mr.  McFlusterer,  with  very  natural  surprise. 

"  Yes,  you.  At  least  it  was  you  that  made  me  want  to  come ;  if 
you  had  been  like  other  men,  I  should  have  been  content  to  remain 
at  home." 

This  interesting  discourse  was  interrupted  by  the  man  at  the  mast- 
head suddenly  announcing  fresh  signals  from  the  fleet,  and  the  captives 
were  hurriedly  remanded  to  their  quarters  in  the  rear  cabin.  It  was 
not  an  uncomfortable  locality ;  the  port-holes  were  open,  and,  had  it 
not  been  that  Messrs.  McFlusterer  and  Puncherry  were  secured  by 
chains  to  ring-bolts  in  the  side,  they  might  have  imagined  themselves 
on  board  of  their  former  luxurious  craft. 

The  cabin  evidently  adjoined  that  of  the  commissioner,  and  was 
not  lacking  in  emblems  of  Western  civilization,  though  they  were 
somewhat  misappreciated.  For  instance,  on  a  table  stood  a  stove,  but 
manifestly  for  ornament ;  in  a  corner  was  a  French  clock,  with  its  face 
to  the  wall ;  while  the  sides  of  the  apartment  were  adorned  with  pictures 
hung  upside  down. 

Mr.  McFlusterer,  as  soon  as  his  fetters  had  been  again  made  fast, 
demanded  of  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  in  a  slightly  injured  tone  of  voice, 
wherein  his  difierence  from  other  men  could  be  held  responsible  for  her 
desire  to  risk  the  dangers  of  the  deep. 

"  Why,"  exclaimed  his  wife,  "  if,  for  instance,  you  had  joined  the 
Jockey  Club,  as  I  wished  last  year,  we  might  have  been  driving  on  a 
coach  to  the  races  at  this  very  instant.  It  was  just  to  save  the  initia- 
tion-fee, Percival,"  she  continued,  in  a  dramatic  tone  of  voice,  "  that 
you  have  sacrificed  me  your  wife,  Mr.  Puncherry  your  best  friend, 
and,  what  you  probably  consider  of  greater  moment,  yourself,  for 
twenty-five  dollars !" 

"  Oh,  Lord !  I  wonder  what  they'll  do  with  us,"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Puncherry,  anxious  to  draw  off  the  fire  from  his  friend;  for  Mr. 
Puncherry,  though  touchy,  was  a  good-hearted  gentleman.  "  Curse  it ! 
this  infernal  idiot  has  got  my  chain  so  short  I  can't  sit  down.     Here, 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  27 

you  black-tailed  imp  of  darkness!"  he  continued,  vainly  calling  after 
the  vanished  attendant,  and  then  to  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  who  alone  of 
the  party  had  the  free  use  of  her  lower  limbs.  "  Might  I  beg  you, 
madam,  to  see  if  you  can  find  a  bell  ?" 

Mrs.  McFlusterer,  thus  appealed  to,  began  a  search  which  the 
civilized  appearance  of  things  generally  gave  promise  of  being  suc- 
cessful. 

"  It's  very  awkward,  but  you  see  I  can't  even  sit  down  ;  it  keeps  me 
so  tight  to  the  wall.     How  is  yours,  Mr.  McFlusterer  ?'' 

"  It  might  be  worse,''  replied  poor  Mr.  P.  T.,  who  endeavored  to 
cultivate  on  all  occasions  a  cheerful  and  philosophical  frame  of  mind. 
'*  It's  better  than  being  drowned." 

"I'm  really  glad,  though,  the  vessel  sank,"  said  Mr.  Puncherry, 
in  a  meditative  way.  "  There  were  a  lot  of  improvements  in  her 
machinery  which  it  would  never  have  done  for  these  fellows  to  have 
seen  and  adopted." 

"  I  guess  it  will  be  a  big  loss,"  said  Mr.  McFlusterer,  with  the 
slightest  possible  tinge  of  irony. 

"  Oh,  no,"  replied  Mr.  Puncherry,  who  besides  being  kindly  was  a 
large,  hopeful  man.  "  You  see,  I'll  have  her  raised  up  and  pumped  out, 
and  then  I'll  sell  her  to  the  next  administration." 

"  I  wonder  what  they'll  do  with  us  ?"  asked  Mr.  McFlusterer,  to 
change  the  conversation. 

"  Why,  they'll  hold  you  both  for  enormous  ransoms  and  sell  me  into 
slavery;  you  heard  the  proposal  of  that  odious  wretch.  Oh,  no,  I 
forgot :  you  are  both  to  be  tossed  overboard  to  propitiate  the  Dragon 
of  the  Sea."  Mrs.  McFlusterer  said  this  with  a  slightly  irritating  tone 
of  decision  :  the  delightful  ecstasy  of  the  thrust,  indeed,  alone  saved  her 
from  a  fresh  fit  of  hysterics. 

"  I  think,"  said  Mr.  McFlusterer,  with  a  return  to  his  usual 
caution,  "  we'd  better  avoid  all  appearance  of  being  rich  :  it  might  raise 
our  price." 

"  Great  heavens  !  how  the  papers  will  talk,  when  they  hear  we  are 
captured !"  cried  Mr.  Puncherry.  "  Gad  !  if  I  could  only  get  hold  of 
the  end  of  a  telegraph-wire,  I'd  begin  a  suit  against  the  government 
for  sinking  my  ship." 

"  Do  you  really  think  it  will  get  into  the  papers  ?"  inquired  Mrs. 
McFlusterer,  as  a  ray  of  hope  lightened  the  murky  horizon  ;  for  Mrs. 
P.  T.  revelled  in  a  sensation. 

"  Of  course  it  will :  does  anything  of  interest  keep  out  of  them, 
madam  ?"  Mr.  Puncherry,  among  his  many  possessions,  owned  a  hun- 
dred shares  of  newspaper  jH-operty. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  at  this  moment  screamed.  A  dark  figure,  stripped 
to  the  waist,  had  entered  the  room  without  her  knowledge,  and  was 
crawling  along  the  floor  behind  her. 

*'  Melican  woman's  tongue  too  long,"  angrily  exclaimed  the  wretch, 
rising  on  his  knees  and  glancing  down  at  the  blade  of  a  murderous  knife 
that  was  stuck  in  his  belt. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  screamed  again,  while  both  of  the  gentlemen, 
chained  to  the  wall,  could  do  nothing  but  stare  in  dumb  horror. 


28 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 


"  Melican  woman  all  foot  and  all  tongue ;  not  miss  a  little  of  either," 
continued  the  intruder,  in  the  same  pigeon  English. 

Id  point  of  fact,  he  was  simply  a  new  attendant  who  had  come  in 
answer  to  the  bell.  But,  unfamiliar  with  the  customs  of  the  East,  Mrs. 
McFlusterer  was  alarmed  by  his  crawling  in  on  his  stomach  ;  while  the 
servant,  on  his  part,  probably  annoyed  at  his  reception,  did  not  hesitate 
to  give  his  coming  a  more  sinister  interpretation  than  necessary.  At  all 
events,  Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  retreated  to  the  far  end  of  the  cabin,  and 
her  screiuns  brought  in  the  guard,  headed  by  Taonsu. 

She  appealed  to  him,  throwing  herself  on  her  knees  before  him.  . 

**  O  lady  of  the  West,''  he  exclaimed,  looking  severely  at  the  ser- 
vant, "  this  creature  has  exceeded  his  instructions.  Thy  privilege  it 
shall  be  to  allot  his  punishment." 

In  the  ecstasy  of  her  supposed  deliverance,  Mrs.  McFlusterer  flung 
lier  arms  about  his  neck.  Taonsu  blushed,  if  the  sickly  flush  that  pene- 
trated his  sallow  skin  could  be  so  denominated. 

"  He  shall  be  beheaded,  daughter  of  the  West,  and  his  head  shall 
serve  to  ornament  thy  bridal  state-room." 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  the  utmost  difficulty  in  dissuading  Taonsu 
from  the  immediate  execution  of  this  grim  sentence.  Then,  as  a 
mark  of  his  favor,  she  induced  him  to  give  the  two  gentlemen  a  little 
more  slack  in  chain.  Shortly  afterwards  the  table  was  spread  for 
dinner,  and,  though  they  were  a  little  suspicious  of  the  dishes,  their 
appetites  were  such  as  to  make  them  do  ample  justice  to  what  was  put 
before  them. 

At  the  close  of  the  meal,  Mr.  Puncherry  pushed  back  his  chair  as 
far  as  his  chain  would  permit.  "  You  see,  I  go  in  more  for  safety  than 
for  speed,"  he  said,  with  the  same  delightful  assurance,  as  he  recurred 
again  to  his  vessel.  "  To  be  sure,  that  infernal  fort  sank  her,  but  round 
balls,  as  every  one  knows,  are  obsolete,  and  my  armor  wasn't  prepared 
to  withstand  them  ;  indeed,  it  is  my  principle  to  get  rid  of  a  projectile 
as  quick  as  you  can  ;  it's  better  for  it  to  go  slap  through  and  away,  than 
to  stick,  particyilarly  if  it's  a  shell  that  might  burst  on  boai'd.  You 
must  confess  too,  McFlusterer,  that  it  ain't  every  ship  that  can  sail 
around  Cuba  and  get  back'  in  a  month." 

"It  certainly  is  not,"  acceded  Mr.  McFlusterer;  "at  least,  every 
ship  that  you  build." 

Mr.  Puncherry  failed  to  notice  the  subtle  irony.  "  Great  Scott !" 
he  continued,  "  the  idea,  of  the  only  garrisoned  fort  in  the  country  letting 
drive  at  the  only  really  well-equipped  vessel !  it's  like  the  story  of  the 
Kilkenny  Cats.  I  tell  you  what  it  is,  if  we  go  on  like  this,  we  will 
soon  have  no  navy  at  all  to  fight  these  rascals."  And  Mr.  Puncherry 
lay  back  in  his  chair  and  lighted  a  cigar. 


CHAPTER   X. 


Mr.  Puncherry  was  right.  Everything  does  get  into  the  papers, 
and  it  was  scarcely  possible  that  so  momentous  an  event  as  the  arrival 
of  the  hostile  fleet  off  the  shores  of  America  could  be  omitted. 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  29 

A  detailed  account  of  the  defence  of  the  fort  was  flashed  up  from 
Key  West,  also  of  the  sinking  of  the  Terror,  on  which  so  many  hopes  had 
centred.  A  full  description  of  her  successful  trial-trip  around  Cuba, 
too,  was  given,  and  the  rash  assumption  was  ventured  that  if  she  had 
not  been  overtaken  and  run  down  by  the  enemy  she  would  have  been 
an  honor  to  the  naval  armament  of  the  nation.  As  to  the  exact  manner 
of  her  destruction  there  seemed  to  be  a  wide  discrepancy  of  opinion,  but 
the  report  most  favorably  Received  was  that  she  had  been  sunk  by  the 
Chinese  fleet. 

"  Of  her  crew,"  this  version  went  on  to  say,  "but  three  persons  are 
known  to  have  been  saved,  and  they  are  now  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy. 
There  is  reason  to  hope  that  Mr.  Puncherry  is  one  of  these  three  survivors, 
since  he  always  kept  ready  at  hand  for  instant  use  on  his  own  vessels  a 
small  life-boat  answering  to  the  description  of  the  one  seen  frantically 
pulling  away  from  the  Terror  as  she  went  down." 

As  it  happened",  China's  proclamation  of  war,  or,  to  be  more 
accurate,  the  message  which  amounted  to  a  declaration  of  war,  was  re- 
ceived at  Washington  the  day  after  the  sailing  of  the  Terror  on  her  ill- 
fated  trip  ;  thus  New  York,  along  with  the  country  at  large,  had  barely 
had  a  month  for  preparation.  These  thirty  days  having  now  elapsed, 
the  enemy  were  already  ofi*  the  coast  and  steadily  advancing  northward, 
having,  presumably,  for  their  first  objective  point  the  richest  city  of  the 
New  World.  Let  us  see  what  New  York  had  done  to  protect  herself 
during  this  interval. 

After  her  first  paroxysm  of  astonishment,  indignation,  and  alarm, 
she  had  set  herself  valiantly  to  meet  the  emergency. 

She  had  ample  talent  at  her  disposal,  and  hastily  called  a  meeting 
of  the  same  Board  on  Fortifications  whose  counsels  she  had  shortly 
before  despised. 

This  board  had  previously  suggested  that  steel  towers  and  sunken 
batteries  should  be  located  at  Sandy  Hook,  at  points  near  Forts  Ham- 
ilton and  Wadsworth,  and,  besides  this,  at  Throgg's  Neck  to  protect 
the  entrance  to  the  city  by  the  Sound.  The  board  had  further  suggested 
that  a  series  of  small  islands  running  like  stepping-stones  from  the 
extreme  east  of  Long  Island  to  the  Connecticut  shore  should  be  fortified 
as  outer  bulwarks  against  approach  from  the  sea.  These  several  bat- 
teries, properly  equipped,  would  have  amply  guarded  New  York,  and 
they  could  have  been  constructed  at  a  total  cost  of  fourteen  million 
dollars,  being  but  little  more  than  one-half  of  one  ])er  cent,  of  the 
value  of  that  city's  destructible  property,  which  has  been  estimated  at 
$2,574,490,678.  Thus  for  fourteen  million  dollars,  or  one-half  of  one 
per  cent,  of  its  destructible  wealth.  New  York  could  have  been  made 
secure;  and  this  fourteen  million  dollars,  curiously  enough,  was  two 
millions  less  than  the  unexpended  balance  due  upon  our  Little  Log- 
Rolling  Creeks  before  many  millions  more  were  voted  for  their  further 
improvement.  It  has  been  shown,  however,  that  it  would  require  five 
years  to  obtain  a  "  plant"  sufficient  to  make  the  guns  wherewith  to  equip 
such  forts.  To  be  sure,  it  may  be  parenthetically  observed,  a  march 
had  been  stolen  on  us ;  for  we  never  could  believe  that  China — this 
quintessence  of  absurdity,  with  its  stock-still  conservatism,  and  its  boy 


30 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 


monarch  sitting  on  an  ivory  throne  behind  a  bamboo  screen — would 
ever  involve  us  in  a  real  war.  But  suppose  hostilities  should  spring 
up  between  us  and  Germany,  France,  England,  or  even  Chili,  let  me 
ask,  would  these  nations  magnanimously  allow  us  five  years  for  prepa- 
ration? You  reply,  America,  wishing  to  live  at  peace  with  all  the 
world,  will  take  care  to  involve  herself  in  no  complications.  European 
nations  will  be  equally  cautious,  if  from  no  other  motive  than  because 
any  trouble  with  the  United  States  would  be  extremely  unpopular  with 
the  masses  of  any  such  country,  which,  in  their  hearts,  sympathize 
with  the  experiment  of  democracy  here  being  essayed.  This  is  all  very 
true ;  but  you  forget  that  the  act  of  some  hot-headed  lieutenant  on  one 
of  our  own  ships  at  some  distant  port  or  station  might  put  us  in  a 
position  from  which  we  could  not  with  honor  withdraw. 

You  also  forget  that  the  unprotected  condition  of  our  harbors  might 
prevent  us  from  maintaining  our  just  claims  in  some  case  where  an 
immediate  settlement  might  be  demanded. 

But  to  return  to  the  Board  on  Fortifications.  As  it  was  naturally 
impossible  to  procure  steel  guns  in  thirty  days,  and  as  the  guns  that 
we  had  would  be  worse  than  useless,  and,  further,  as  the  various  forts 
that  decorated  the  approaches  to  the  city  would  be  more  dangerous  to 
the  garrisons  than  to  the  invaders,  the  board  suggested  that,  in  the 
emergency,  the  chief  reliance  should  be  placed  on  torpedoes.  The 
result,  at  all  events,  would  settle  a  much-disputed  point, — namely, 
whether  torpedoes  alone  would  not  adequately  fulfil  all  the  purposes 
of  harbor  defence. 

Now,  these  torpedoes  were  made  both  by  the  government  and  by 
private  individuals.  As  the  principal  torpedo-stations  belonging  to 
the  government— viz.,  at  Willett's  Point  and  at  Goat  Island — had  been 
long  without  appropriations,  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  trust  to  private 
enterprise  to  supply  the  machines. 

Not  to^  enter  into  a  technical  description  of  the  various  kinds  of 
torpedoes,  it  will  be  enough  to  state  that  they  can  be  divided  into  two 
l)rincipal  classes.  First,  the  "controllable"  class,— that  is,  machines 
directed  by  the  operator  on  terra  firmaj  or  even  from  a  vessel.  Second, 
the  "  stationary"  or  "  submarine  mine,"  which  is  anchored,  and  dis- 
charged either  by  contact  with  the  enemy  or  by  electricity  from  the 
shore.  ^  The  first  class  generally  have  this  objection,  that  if  they  are 
to  be  directed  from  the  shore  they  are  limited  in  their  flight,  and  hostile 
fleets,  knowing  their  range,  keep  just  out  of  reach.  There  is  a  third 
class,— namely,  the  "automobile  torpedo,"— but,  as  the  United  States 
is  the  only  nation  that  possesses  none,  I  have  not  included  them  in  the 
list.  There  was  discovered  to  be  an  additional  objection  against  con- 
trollable torpedoes,  so  far  as  the  present  emergency  was  concerned,  for, 
when  they  came  to  be  experimented  with,  they  were  found  to  be  a 
singularly  uncontrollable  machine ;  as  one  of  them,  after  rushing  a  few 
hundred  yards  towards  its  imaginary  enemy,  suddenly  turned  around, 
and,  commg  back  in  its  course,  exploded  among  the  spectators,  with 
terrible  effect.  Under  these  circumstances,  it  was  deemed  best  to  trust 
to  the  stationary  torpedo,  and  a  force  had  been  sent  out  to  lay  these 
along  the  various  channels  by  which  the  fleet  might  approach  the  city. 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  31 

Though  such  an  operation  is  usually  conducted  with  the  utmost  secrecy, 
in  the  present  case  the  hurry  was  great,  and  proper  precautions  to  keep 
away  spectators  were  neglected.  Many  people,  therefore,  witnessed  the 
work,  and  amid  the  swarm  of  crafts  that  were  tempted  forth,  a  small 
row-boat  escaped  any  particular  notice.  She  came  from  a  long,  rakish 
schooner  that  hovered  about  in  the  offing,  and  at  the  oars  was  seated 
a  man  with  a  slouch  hat  and  a  dirty  face,  who  stopped  and  marked  on 
a  little  map  the  exact  location  of  each  torpedo  as  it  was  anchored. 

"  And  where  was  the  great  American  navy  ?"  you  ask.  I  will 
tell  you  exactly  where  it  was  at  the  time  of  the  declaration  of  hos- 
tilities. 

Four  vessels  were  being  sold  at  auction  at  San  Francisco, — viz., 
the  Cyane,  the  Shenandoah,  the  Wachusett,  and  the  Lackawanna ;  one 
was  being  sold  at  League  Island, — namely,  the  Pilgrim ;  and  three 
more  at  Brooklyn, — viz.,  the  Tennessee,  the  Powhatan,  and  the 
Ticonderoga.  Of  our  effective  fleet  we  had  the  following  encouraging 
particulars,  which  I  quote  verbatim  from  the  official  report  that  was 
received,  curiously  enough,  a  few  days  earlier. 

"  The  Swatara,"  it  stated,  "  is  at  Portsmouth.  She  is  to  have 
new  boilers  and  extensive  repairs  made  in  her  hull ;  she  will  be  ready 
for  sea,  it  is  hoped,  in  a  few  months,  and  will  then  in  all  likelihood 
join  the  North  Atlantic  Squadron  if  she  can  reach  it.  The  Nipsic, 
Enterprise,  Thetis  (an  old  whaler),  and  the  Richmond  are  almost  ready 
for  sea.  The  former  will  relieve  the  Pinta  at  Alaska,  and  the  latter 
will  become  the  flag-ship  of  the  North  Atlantic,  i.e.y  the  Home 
Squadron.  The  Nipsic  and  the  Enterprise  will  be  ready  for  sea 
within  a  few  months,  and  will  also  join  the  Home  Squadron.  The 
Trenton,  at  Norfolk,  will  require  several  months  for  necessary  repairs. 
To  take  the  place  of  the  condemned  vessels  we  have  the  Porpoise 
and  the  Pacific,  and  a  cruiser  called  the  Hub,  now  in  process  of 
construction." 

Such  were  the  condition,  locality,  and  situation  of  the  best  part  of 
the  American  navy  on  the  declaration  of  hostilities.  In  addition  to 
these  were  a  half-dozen  old  monitors,  one  of  which,  lying  off  the 
Brooklyn  Navy  Yard,  immediately  sank  when  it  was  taken  into  deep 
water.  Nevertheless,  the  ferry-boats  and  the  magnificent  Sound  and 
River  steamers  might  be  utilized;  and,  these  being  faster  than  any 
ships  the  government  possessed,  it  was  proposed  to  man  them,  to  run 
down  rapidly  upon  the  enemy,  and  to  throw  on  each  of  the  iron-clads 
a  sufficient  force  to  carry  it  by  assault.  It  was  a  desperate  under- 
taking, but,  the  times  being  bad,  and  many  people  out  of  work,  sufficient 
tiumbers  for  the  purpose  answered  to  the  call  for  volunteers,  and  they 
were  immediately  put  into  training. 

You  ask.  What  did  Congress  do  ?  Was  it  not  appealed  to  ?  Of 
course  it  was.  The  President  called  an  extra  session,  but,  as  munitions 
of  war,  not  speeches,  were  what  the  poor  cities  wanted,  the  extra 
session  was  a  work  of  supererogation.  To  assist  every  seaboard  city 
in  so  few  days  was  a  matter  of  utter  impossibility;  and  while 
enormous  sums  of  money  (ten  times  greater  than  any  that  had  been 
previously  asked)  were  voted,  and  while  every  ship  of  the  navy  that 


32  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

could  float  was  hastily  ordered  out,  the  inhabitants  of  the  exposed 
towns  were  practically  told  that  they  must  look  to  their  own  resources. 

As  regards  the  State  of  New  York,  the  Governor  had  called  out 
the  militia;  the  Knights  of  Labor  had  come  forward  as  knights  of 
war ;  the  police  were  reinforced  by  special  constables ;  and,  not  to  be 
behindhand,  the  young  club-men  had  volunteered  en  masse.  They 
were  dubbed  the  "  Fancies,"  and,  the  question  of  uniform  exciting  so 
bitter  a  diiference  of  opinion,  they  resolved  as  a  compromise  to  stick  to 
tlieir  usual  attire.  Its  essentials  were  a  high,  glossy  black  hat,  and  a 
light  overcoat,  with  little  swallow-like  tails  projecting  out  behind,  and 
the  effect  was  decidedly  military. 

These  several  classes  of  forces,  it  was  hoped,  would  repel  at  all 
events  a  landing;  and,  to  have  them  ready  at  hand,  sheds  and  tempo- 
rary barracks  had  been  erected  in  the  principal  parks  and  squares  of 
the  city. 

Nevertheless,  the  great  majority  of  well-to-do  citizens  looked  some- 
what askance  at  these  extensive  preparations,  and  they"  had  already 
begun  to  leave  the  city  slowly.  When  the  news  was  telegraphed  up 
that  the  hostile  fleet  had  reached  Key  West,  however,  their  desire  to 
get  away  received  a  sudden  impulse.  Fifth  Avenue  became  one 
moving  caravan,  and  valuable  pictures,  silver,  and  statues  were  being 
hurriedly  flung  into  vehicles  of  all  kinds.  Here  would  be  a  Fortuny 
lying  on  the  side-walk,  and  there  a  bust  by  Launt  Thompson,  wait- 
ing to  be  moved.  I  myself  bought  for  ten  cents  a  priceless  Jules 
Breton,  which  a  boot-black  told  me  had  fallen  out  of  a  cart  and  which 
he  had  picked  up  in  the  gutter.  On  every  side  was  confusion  worse 
confounded,  and  the  agonized  haste  of  others  growing  contagious,  as  at 
fires,  people  were  throwing  valuable  mirrors  often  out  of  the  windows, 
while  they  carefully  removed  their  mattresses  by  hand.  Happy  were 
the  owners  of  a  horse  and  wagon.  Cab-fares,  never  low  in  New  York, 
rose  to  unheard-of  altitudes,  and  it  is  stated  that  a  driver  received  two 
hundred  dollars  for  driving  a  bronze  copy  of  the  Yenus  of  Milo 
beyond  the  city  limits  in  his  cab.  Every  species  of  vehicle  was 
brought  into  requisition,  and  even  hearses  were  seen  carting  away 
the  precious  plunder,  or  sometimes  packed  with  living  babies  whose 
fond  mothers  could  secure  no  other  description  of  conveyance  to 
transport  them  from  the  scene  of  danger.  Many  people,  however, 
did  not  move  their  children  or  effects, — people  that  lived  down  in 
the  Five  Points,  and  had  no  effects  to  move, — people  that  lived  in 
tenements  even  higher  than  the  cab-fares,  but  had  no  cab-fares  to 
give.  The  people,  in  general,  who  lived  in  the  crowded  purlieus  of 
the  great  city,  having  no  works  of  art,  did  not  move  them ;  and,  havinf 
nowhere  to  go  themselves,  they  remained  where  they  were,  with  their 
offspring. 

Thus  endeth  the  first  lesson  of  the  Dream  of  Conquest. 


^   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  •    33 


CHAPTER  XI. 


It  was  a  lovely  spring  morning  when  the  fleet  again  approached  the 
coast,  in  the  vicinity  of  Hampton  Roads. 

Mrs.  McFIasterer  was  standing  on  deck,  pensively  regarding  the 
sea,  and  anon  looking  in  the  direction  of  the  country  she  had  come,  so 
to  speak,  to  devastate.  The  probable  commiseration  of  her  fate  by 
the  public,  the  sensation  that  her  capture  must  have  in  all  likelihood 
occasioned,  the  fact  that  at  this  very  moment  she  was  probably  the  one 
absorbing  topic  of  conversation  in  ten  thousand  homes,  tinctured  her 
sadness  with  a  sense  of  gratification  impossible  to  describe. 

She  was  looking  over  the  taifrail  deep  down  into  the  dark-blue 
water,  observing  a  school  of  porpoises  that  were  playing  about  the 
vessel,  when  Taonsu  approached  and  interrupted  her  reveries : 

"  Ah  !  the  lady  of  the  West  is  sad  to  think  of  the  proud  cities  that 
are  to  be  laid  low,  the  homes  that  are  to  be  desolated,  and  the  multi- 
tudinous graves ;  but  little  did  thy  people  heed  it,  O  daughter,  when 
the  English  sailed  into  our  harbors,  destroyed  our  cities,  and  laid  in 
ashes  the  summer  palace  of  the  very  Son  of  Heaven  himself." 

It  was  sweet  to  the  ears  of  the  captive  to  be  called  "  daughter," 
and  her  gentle  sadness  took  a  more  sentimental  cast. 

"  But  thou  must  know,  O  Taonsu,"  she  urged,  adapting  her  style 
to  the  formal  phraseology  of  her  companion,  "  that  we  have  revolted 
from  England.  Rememberest  thou  not  George  Washington,  who  never 
told  a  lie,  Daniel  Webster,  Jeiferson,  and  the  other  great  men  who 
struggled  and  bled  to  free  us  from  England's  tyrannical  rule?"  Mrs. 
McFlusterer,  like  many  other  fashionable  women  that  I  know,  was 
somewhat  weak  in  her  history. 

"  What  are  thy  revohitions  compared  with  the  sum  of  China's 
antiquity  ?"  replied  Taonsu.  "  You  are  English  sprung,  and,  according 
to  the  word  of  your  sacred  book,  the  sins  of  the  father  shall  be  visited 
upon  the  offspring  unto  the  third  and  fourth  generation  thereof." 
Taonsu,  as  we  know,  spoke  English  fluently,  with  only  the  slightest 
possible  accent. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  resolved  to  make  one  last  appeal  to  him. 

"  But  is  it  right,  O  Taonsu,"  she  exclaimed,  still  continuing  in  the 
style  of  speech  she  had  adopted,  "  that  tliou  who  hast  benefited  by  this 
Western  civilization  shouldst  come  to  destroy  it  ?  What  good  will  it 
do  thee?" 

"  Lady,  we  in  the  East  do  not  measure  everything  by  the  profit 
thai  accrues ;  such  is  the  habit  of  money-changers,  and  of  those  who, 
as  with  you,  deal  in  stocks."" 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  unconsciously  turned  and  regarded  her  husband, 
who,  attached  to  the  end  of  a  long  chain,  was  being  led  up  and  down 
by  a  Chinaman,  like  a  dog  by  its  master,  for  his  morning  walk  on  the 
deck.  On  the  other  side  of  the  deck,  Mr.  Puncherry  was  being  sim- 
ilarly conducted.  How  the  unfortunate  gentlemen  could  have  prevented 
this  undignified  treatment,  Mrs.  McFkisterer  did  not  stop  to  puzzle 
out;  but,  as  she  gazed  at  them,  there  appeared  something  so  ignoble 
3 


3^  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

in  their  situation,  and  even  in  their  character,  that  it  gave  emphasis  to 
Taonsu's  remark.     Like  a  woman,  she  unreasonably  despised  tliem. 

How  pointed,  indeed,  were  the  observations  of  this  quaint  young 
man  !  "  Those  of  the  West  measure  everything  by  the  profit  that 
accrues  •"  and,  were  they  landed  at  this  very  moment  m  New  York, 
she  felt' obliged  to  confess  that  nothing  but  the  chains  that  now  held 
her  two  friends  would  keep  the  one  from  the  Stock  Exchange  and 
the  other  from  his  place  of  business.  ,       .        ,  x-      «.» 

"  Taonsu,'*  she  asked,  with  a  weary  sigh,  "  what  is  to  be  my  fate  ? 

"  Thou  hast  learned,  0  daughter  of  the  West,  that  his  Great  Ex- 
cellency is  to  bear  thee  with  him  back  to  his  home  across  the  sea,  where 
thou  shalt  ride  in  a  palanquin  of  ivory  and  gold.'' 

"  But  is  this  proper,  O  Taonsu?     Thou  forgettest  I  am  a  wedded 

wife." 

"  At  thy  wish  thou  canst  be  freed,  O  daughter,  for  thou  hast  but  to 
say^the  word,  and  thy  two  husbands  are  struggling  in  the  waves." 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  turned  away  resolutely  from  this  tempting  pros- 
pect. 

"But  why  does  he  wish  to  take  me  across  the  sea?"  she  asked; 
and  visions  of  hareems,  of  fountains,  and  of  beautiful  Georgian  women 
suddenly  floated  before  her  mind.  "  Why  does  he  wish  to  tear  me 
from  my  home?"  she  continued,  sentimentally;  then,  with  a  blush  of 
embarrassment,  "  He  said  I  resembled  his — his  grandmother,  and  that 
my  feet  were  as  the  blades  of  paddle-wheels :  wherefore  should  he  say 
this,  if  his  heart  longeth  for  me  ?" 

"Ah,  fair  daughter,  by  this  he  intended  to  signify  his  great  affec- 
tion. We  in  the  East  venerate  our  ancestors,  and  the  greatest  compli- 
ment is  to  compare  our  loves  to  them.  Filled  out  to  suit  the  Western 
fancy,  his  words  meant  this :  that  thou  dost  resemble  his  grandmother 
when  she  was  in  the  first  flush  of  her  glorious  youth  and  beauty." 

"And  dost  thou  really  think  he  meant  this  delicate  flattery?" 

"  As  surely,  fair  lady,  as  his  treatment  of  the  servant  that  offended 
thee  was  delicately  flattering  to  thee." 

"  And  what  of  him,  O  Taonsu  ?"  asked  the  lady,  unsuspiciously. 

"  Why,  he  has  already  partaken  of  him." 

"  Already  partaken  of  him  ?"  cried  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  with  vague 
horror. 

"  Partaken  of  him  in  the  spirit,  fair  daughter  of  the  West.  His 
tongue  was  served  him  for  breakfast,  his  ears  for  luncheon,  and  what 
there  was  over  was  left  to  the  crew, — not  to  be  actually  eaten,  but  to 
serve  as  a  feast  for  the  eye  and  to  show  the  danger  of  offending  thee. 
Deemest  thou  not,  therefore,  that  his  affection  for  thee  is  unbounded  ? 
It  is  strong  and  abiding,  and  as  certainly  exists  as  the  vessel  that  ap- 
proaches is  the  one  that  will  quickly  pilot  us  to  our  destination." 

]\f rs.  McFlusterer  looked  in  thefdirection  where  Taonsu  was  point- 
ing, and  saw  that  they  had  approached,  without  her  notice  (though 
signals  from  the  steamer  must  have  announced  the  fact  before),  a  rakish 
schooner  that  was  lying-to.  Indeed,  a  boat  was  already  rowing  from 
the  craft  towards  the  flag-ship,  and,  as  Taonsu  spoke,  the  latter  slack- 
ened up.     The  lady's  surprise  was  so  great  that  for  a  moment  she  forgot 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  35 

the  revolting  nature  of  the  communication  just  made  to  her  ;  or  let  me 
say  that  the  hope  of  some  unexpected  assistance  was  inspired  by  the 
stoppage.  As  she  gazed  down  into  the  boat,  however,  the  appearance 
of  the  man  in  the  stern-sheets  gave  her  little  encouragement.  He  wore 
a  low  felt  hat ;  the  cast  of  his  countenance  was  villanous,  and  his  face 
was  so  dirty  that  it  actually  suggested  a  negro's.  Nevertheless,  she 
would  appeal  to  him  :  no  American  would  be  so  lost  to  patriotism  as  to 
pilot  a  fleet  against  his  own  country.  Alas  !  she  knew  not  that  the  wile 
of  the  enemy  had  engaged  a  hated  Canadian,  nor  had  she  calculated 
that  before  the  stranger  reached  the  ship's  side,  herself  and  her  two 
companions  would  be  summarily  dismissed  below. 


CHAPTEB  XII. 


The  captives,  we  say,  were  hurried  down  below  ere  the  man  with 
the  slouch  hat  and  dirty  face  had  mounted  to  the  deck.  Until  now  she 
had  scarcely  realized  the  nature  of  the  people  in  whose  power  she  was, 
but  the  communication  of  Taonsu  woke  her  up  to  the  full  realities  of  the 
situation.  What  should  she  do,  what  steps  should  she  take  for  her 
escape  ?  Ignorant  of  the  exact  locality  on  the  coast  opposite  which  the 
fleet  had  arrived,  she  yet  knew  sufficient  of  its  geography  to  realize  that 
they  must  now  be  less  than  two  days'  sail  from  her  native  city,  since 
she  had  been  on  board  already  five  days,  and  from  early  this  morning 
they  had  been  sailing  on  in  sight  of  land.  During  these  five  days,  too, 
the  captives  had  been  treated  with  courtesy,  not  to  say  kindness.  To 
be  sure,  there  had  been  that  question  raised  once  or  twice  about  flinging 
Mr.  Puncherry  and  lier  husband  into  the  waves ;  but  the  object  of  the 
proposal,  when  she  came  to  analyze  it,  was  that  she  might  be  maritally 
unencumbered,  and  the  offer  had  only  been  made  with  a  view  to  meet 
the  prejudices  of  Western  propriety,  so  to  speak.  With  regard  to  these 
chains,  too,  it  was  several  times  explained  to  the  prisoners  by  Taonsu 
that  their  being  tied  by  the  foot  was  merely  complimentary,  intended 
to  show  that  they  were  persons  of  very  great  distinction  ;  and,  though 
both  gentlemen  had  energetically  expressed  their  willingness  to  forego 
these  marks  of  honor,  Wang-Chi-Poo,  through  the  same  interpreter, 
again  and  again  insisted  that  he  could  never  bring  himself  to  treat  them 
with  so  little  consideration  as  to  let  them  loose.  Indeed,  their  evident 
displeasure  at  their  fetters  was  entirely  misinterpreted  by  Wang-Chi- 
Poo  ;  for,  thinking  that  they  were  dissatisfied  because  the  form  of  their 
captivity  was  lacking  in  punctilio,  he  was  only  persuaded  by  Taonsu 
not  to  "grade  up"  their  distinction  by  incarcerating  them  in  a  couple 
of  bamboo  cages  reserved  for  prisoners  of  the  most  exalted  rank. 

Looked  at  from  one  point,  horrible  as  it  was  in  itself,  the  punish- 
ment of  the  servant  was  intended  as  a  courtesy ;  and,  although  her 
abhorrence  at  his  fate  could  never  be  overcome,  the  spirit  that  dictated 
it  was  flattering,  and  must  be  recognized.  In  short,  her  heart  was 
touched,  or  rather  let  me  say  her  womanly  instincts  were  gradually  be- 
ginning to  reassert  themselves. 

Barely  two  hours  after  the  prisoners  had  been  dismissed  below  they 


36  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

were  unexpectedly  told  that  their  presence  was  again  desired,  and  par- 
ticularly that  of  Mr.  Puncherry.  At  the  companion-way  they  were  met 
by  the  commissioner  and  his  interpreter,  who,  ceremoniously  leading  them 
on  deck,  accompanied  them  to  the  forward  part  of  the  ship.  Here,  on 
the  forecastle,  they  found,  to  their  surprise,  a  number  of  chairs  facing 
forward  and  ranged  as  for  private  theatricals,  with  a  large  one,  like  a 
throne  for  royalty,  in  the  middle.  On  these  the  captives  were  told  to 
seat  themselves,  Mr.  Puncherry  being  directed  to  take  the  principal 
chair. 

Then  Taonsu  explained  that  the  pilot  who  had  so  recently  come  on 
board  brought  news  that  the  American  fleet  was  in  the  offing,  and,  the 
ships  having  just  been  sighted,  he  thought  that  perchance  the  patriotism 
of  the  party  would  be  fired  by  the  proud  spectacle  of  seeing  them  come 
into  action. 

And  in  truth,  as  they  bore  down,  it  was  a  sight  to  make  any 
American  feel  proud,  even  Mr.  Puncherry,  naval  expert  that  he  was. 
Here  was  the  Swatara,  with  her  newly-tinkered  boilers  and  her  patched- 
up  hull.  Here  were  the  Nipsic  and  the  Enterprise,  hastily  got  ready  ; 
here  was  the  Trenton,  with  a  great  gaping  hole  in  her  bottom  stopped  up 
with  tarpaulins  ;  and  here  were  the  Pilgrim  and  the  Tennessee.  Next 
came  the  Powhatan  and  the  Ticonderoga,  taken  from  under  the  very 
hammer  of  the  auctioneer  at  the  Brooklyn  Navy- Yard,  and,  though 
condemned,  commissioned.  After  all,  with  uncertain  motion  and  most 
melancholy,  came  the  Pinta,  which  had  just  returned  from  Alaska  to 
die. 

And  indeed  it  did  seem  cruel  to  bring  out  these  decrepit  old  vessels 
that  twenty  years  ago  had  so  well  earned  a  needed  repose.  In  many  of 
them  the  scars  of  the  late  war  had  never  been  obliterated.  Serving  as 
a  sort  of  escort  for  the  squadron  were  the  new  steel  cruisers  the  Porpoise 
and  Pacific.  Like  a  host  of  lame  men  in  charge  of  a  couple  of  small 
but  vigorous  boys,  the  fleet  hobbled  forth  to  meet  the  enemy,  bringing 
with  them  the  recollections  and  traditions  of  a  glorious  past,  when  the 
flag  they  carried  at  their  peak  was  borne  to  victory  instead  of  ridicule. 

As  I  have  intimated,  the  Porpoise  and  Pacific  were  steaming  around 
these  vessels,  now  rendering  assistance  to  one  and  now  to  another,  and 
trying  to  bring  them  all  up  in  proper  shape  into  action. 

Wang-Chi-Poo  is  smiling  with  a  mild  sort  of  irony.  "  O  Taonsu," 
he  exclaimed,  turning  to  his  secretary,  "  this  is  most  remarkable  :  these 
people,  thou  hast  told  me,  protect  their  industries,  but  fail  to  protect 
their  coasts.     How  is  it  ?" 

Mr.  Puncherry  at  this  point  broke  in  upon  the  dialogue.  He  failed 
to  comprehend  the  commissioner's  words,  but  that  they  were  inspired  by 
the  decrepit  appearance  of  the  fleet  was  manifest,  and  it  angered  him 
to  be  set  up  on  a  throne,  as  it  were,  to  behold  the  ignominy  of  his 
country. 

^  "  WeVe  spent  more  money  on  that  fleet  than  you  have  on  your  en- 
tire navy,''  he  said,  rudely  ;  and  he  looked  at  the  commissioner  as  if  he 
dared  him  to  contradict  the  statement. 

"  ^u*  wbich  of  the  two  is  the  more  proper  subject  of  pride?"  de- 
manded Taonsu,— "that  much  is  spent  on  one's  fleet,  or  that  much  is 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  37 

accomplished  by  that  expense  ?  Of  a  truth,  O  inhabitant  of  the  West,  we 
do  not  wish  to  quarrel ;  if  you  are  satisfied,  so  are  we." 

"  It's  all  very  well  to  crow,"  said  Mr.  Puncherry,  "  because  youVe 
stolen  a  march  on  us.  Suppose  you  can  lick  this  fleet ;  fightin'  ain't 
the  only  quality  demanded  in  a  navy.  S'pose  you  can  sail  round  it ; 
sailin'  ain't  everything.  The  great  use  of  a  navy  with  us  is  to  encour- 
age American  ship-building ;  and  if  it  wasn't  for  patchin'  up  them  old 
hulks, — which  is  all  Congress  allows  me  the  money  for, — where  would 
I  be?" 

Before  a  fitting  reply  could  be  found  to  the  question,  the  American 
squadron,  which  by  this  time  was  barely  two  miles  distant,  endeavored 
to  perform  what  was  for  it  a  highly  complicated  manoeuvre, — namely, 
to  fall  into  line  of  battle.  In  the  act  of  doing  so,  most  of  the  ships  ran 
foul  of  each  other,  owing  to  the  rottenness  of  their  equipment,  for, 
though  principally  steamers,  their  engines' were  weak  and  it  was  neces- 
sary to  assist  the  operation  with  their  sails.  Yet  the  top-hamper  was 
so  defective  that  in  the  act  of  coming  about  a  sheet  would  give  way,  or 
a  yard  would  get  jammed  ;  and  it  was  not  surprising  that  they  should, 
for  you  cannot  expect  to  take  condemned  vessels  from  under  the 
auctioneer's  hammer  and  have  them  in  first-class  sailing  trim  in  a 
month's  time. 

Wang-Chi-Poo  still  stands  just  where  he  was,  with  his  hand  resting 
on  the  back  of  Mr.  Puncherry's  chair. 

"  Of  a  truth,"  he  observed,  meditatively,  to  the  interpreter,  "  the 
progress  these  Westerners  make  so  much  boast  of  is  not  shown  in 
their  ships ;  and  as  for  their  forts,  they  have  arrived  but  at  the 
Stone  Age.  How  is  it  I  have  heard  you  say  that  they  call  us  back- 
ward?" 

In  the  mean  while  the  distance  between  the  two  fleets  was  being 
rapidly  lessened,  and  the  nearer  the  Orientals  drew  the  more  aston- 
ished they  were  at  the  appearance  of  everything  on  board.  So  great 
had  been  the  haste  in  getting  these  vessels  ready  that  in  many  cases 
their  tattered  sails  and  rigging  had  not  been  changed  for  new.  Hence, 
shortly  afterwards,  as  they  camQ  opposite  to  the  American  flag-ship, 
and  when  it  became  necessary  for  it  to  send  a  force  of  men  aloft  to 
take  in  a  tattered  sail,  Wang-Chi-Poo  distinctly  saw  the  ratlines  of  the 
shrouds  give  way  under  the  sailors'  feet,  causing  them  to  slide  back, 
one  after  another,  to  the  deck,  as  on  so  many  greased  poles.  Yet  it  was 
a  glorious  evidence  of  American  valor  that  men  should  come  out  at  all 
in  such  poor  old  tubs ;  and  this  was  the  view  that  principally  struck 
Wang-Chi-Poo.  Indeed,  the  commissioner,  with  all  his  faults,  was  a 
gentleman,  a  man  unwilling  to  take  any  unfair  advantage  even  of  an 
enemy.  It  went  against  his  grain  to  fire  upon  such  brave  fellows,  and 
he  felt  that  respect  for  them  which  none  but  the  brave  can  feel.  So 
he  waved  his  hand  affably,  as  is  the  wont  of  Orientals,  at  the  American 
admiral  as  he  passed  him  in  his  flag-ship,  and,  sailing  through  the  very 
thick  of  the  fleet,  left  it  to  be  settled  by  a  heavy  squall  that  he  saw 
gathering  on  the  edge  of  the  horizon. 

And  indeed  we  may  as  well  allow  this  storm  to  be  a  veil  and  draw 
it  gently  over  the  poor  old  hulks. 


3g  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUES'l. 

As  for  the  Porpoise  and  the  Pacific,  the  new  steel  cruisers,  I  can 
say  nothing.  Their  efforts  were  principally  directed  to  lending  such 
assistance  to  the  others  as  would  keep  them  above  water.  The  Chinese 
officers  were  of  the  opinion,  however,  that  they  were  too  large  for 
torpedo-boats,  and  too  small  to  carry  guns  of  sufficient  calibre  to  con- 
tend with  their  larger  vessels.  Certainly,  armed  only  with  six-  and 
eight-inch  guns,  the  projectiles  which,  I  have  forgotten  to  state,  they 
hurled  at  the  foe,  could  not  be  expected  to  penetrate  steel  plates  tested 
to  resist  sixteen-inch  guns ;  and  while  the  contract  for  their  construction 
stipulated  a  speed  of  fifteen  knots  an  hour,  they  could  not  very  well  run 
down  with  their  rams  vessels  that  steamed  nineteen.  All  the  Chinese 
officers  were  agreed,  however,  that  the  one — from  her  propensity  to  roll 
— was  very  well  named  the  Porpoise,  and  the  other — from  the  little 
injury  she  seemed  capable  of  inflicting — the  Pacific. 


CHAPTER   XIII. 


It  was  late  on  the  morning  of  the  third  day  after  leaving  Hampton 
Roads  when  Mrs.  McFlusterer  awoke.  The  sun  was  shining  brightly 
into  the  cabin.  Both  her  husband  and  Mr.  Puncherry  assured  her 
that  tliey  had  arrived  off  Sandy  Hook  at  daybreak,  and  that  there  they 
had  lain  for  the  past  three  horn's.  They  were  again  in  motion,  however, 
and  Mi-s.  McFlusterer  could  hear  the  blades  of  the  propeller  striking 
the  water  •  yet  they  w^ere  proceeding  cautiously,  advancing  slowly,  and 
frequently  stopping.  Mr.  Puncherry,  whose  eyes  were  glued  to  the 
port-hole,  explained  in  professional  language  that  they  were  removing 
the  outer  line  of  torpedoes  that  New  York  had  probably  set  out  for  its 
defence.  Overseeing  this  work  was  a  steam  mosquito-boat  called  the 
Fang,  which  he  had  often  noticed  during  his  promenades  on  deck. 
When  the  steamer  would  slacken  up  and  swing  around  with  the  tide, 
this  vessel  would  frequently  be  disclosed  to  him ;  and,  although  Mr. 
Puncherry  made  light  of  her,  it  may  as  well  be  stated  here  that, 
according  to  the  opinion  of  the  English  Admiralty,  the  Fang  was  the 
fastest  and  best-equipped"  boat  of  her  "kind  in  any  service.  Built  for 
the  Chinese  government  by  Messrs.  Yarrow  &  Co.,  of  Poplar,  the  well- 
known  English  builders,  she  could  steam  the  incredible  sgeed  of  twenty- 
four  and  three-eighths  knots  an  hour.    , 

At  the  wheel,  directing  her  movements,  stood  the  dirty-faced  man 
with  the  slouch  hat,  studying  a  map  which  he  had  made  at  the  time 
these  very  torpedoes  Were  set  out.  Mr.  Puncherry  also  explained  that 
they  had  been  subjected  to  a  heavy  fire  from  certain  earthworks  at  Sandy 
Hook ;  but,  as  Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  failed  to  be  disturbed  by  this, 
it  can  only  be  inferred  that  the  damage  had  been  slight.  Yet  that 
morning  seemed  very  long  to  the  poor  lady,  and  she  thought  it  would 
never  come  to  an  end ;  she  was  weary  of  the  continual  stoppings  and 
backings  of  the  vessel  and  the  rattle  of  the  <lonkey-engine,  while  her 
nerves  absolutely  refused  to  grow  accustomed  to  the  bursting  of  torpe- 
does, harmless  though  their  explosions  generally  prov^ed. 

Towards  mid-day  her  ennui  was  relieved  by  a  really  thrilling  contest 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  39 

between  the  Fang  and  a  little  white-topped  vessel  shaped  like  a  tooth- 
pick, that  suddenly  darted  out  upon  them  from  under  protection  of  the 
shore.  Mr.  Puncherry  cried  out  that  slie  was  the  celebrated  Stiletto. 
She  carried  a  large  tin  pot  on  the  end  of  a  long  improvised  bowsprit ; 
and  it  was  evidently  her  intention  to  jam  this  pot,  which  contained 
some  fifty  pounds  of  nitro-glycerin,  against  the  side  of  the  steamer. 
So  quick  was  her  coming  that  the  fleet  were  unable  to  get  their  aim 
adjusted  upon  her,  and  she  was  already  inside  and  below  the  range  of 
their  heavier  guns  before  they  could  do  as  much  as  fire  on  her. 

The  Fang  was,  however,  on  the  alert,  and,  waiting  till  she  got 
quite  close,  made  a  dash  at  her,  spoiled  her  aim,  and  then,  sliding  up, 
ran  along  by  her  side,  warding  off  her  approach.  Around  and  around 
the  flag-ship  they  tore,  the  Stiletto  outside,  the  Fang  inside,  shoulder  to 
shoulder  as  it  were,  like  boys  playing  football,  the  one  protecting,  the 
other  endeavoring  to  reach,  the  ^'  base." 

Mr.  Puncherry,  in  his  agonized  curiosity,  stuck  his  head  so  far  out 
the  port-hole  that  he  was  unable  to  get  it  back ;  consequently,  he  not 
only  blocked  up  the  most  favorable  outlook,  but,  by  his  smothered  cries 
and  violent  contortions  to  extricate  himself,  prevented  Mrs.  McFlusterer 
and  her  husband  from  enjoying  the  spectacle  as  they  might  have  done 
through  the  other  port-hole.  Nevertheless,  as  it  was,  the  lady  saw 
enough  of  it,  and  was  extremely  relieved  when  their  unwelcome  visitor 
turned  suddenly  away  from  the  Fang  and  started  in  a  bee-line  for 
another  ship.  It  was  a  dangerous  move.  When  she  had  got  far  enough 
to  admit  of  being  aimed  at  by  the  flag-ship,  the  discharge  of  a  heavy 
gun  thrilled  through  the  steamer;  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer  saw  their 
valiant  little  enemy  torge  downward,  throw  her  stern  in  the  air,  and 
disappear.  Being  only  steel-braced  instead  of  steel-plated,  the  vessel 
failed  to  resist  the  shot,  which,  with  its  downward  pitch,  entered  her 
deck  amidships  and  came  out  through  the  bottom  just  forward  of  the 
engines,  perforating  her  through  and  through. 

In  the  mean  while  they  had  drawn  quite  near  to  Coney  Island,  and 
Mrs.  McFlusterer  could  see  people  like  ants  crowding  the  shores  and 
the  tops  of  houses  to  survey  the  contest. 

The  rest  of  the  afternoon  was  agreeably  diversified  by  the  fruitless 
attempts  of  sundry  earthwork  batteries  here,  and  at  a  point  opposite  on 
Staten  Island,  to  reach  the  fleet  with  their  antiquated  ordnance.  Had 
these  earthworks,  according  to  Mr.  Puncherry,  l)een  only  provided  with 
sixteen-inch  steel  guns,  instead  of  the-  old  steel-lined  Rodmans  brought 
from  Fort  Hamilton  and  the  neighboring  fortresses,  it  would  have  been 
quite  a  different  matter  for  the  fleet. 

Mr.  Puncherry,  according  to  his  wont,  became  quite  animated  over 
the  subject,  and  showed  her  how  the  positions  on  these  two  islands, 
together  with  Sandy  Hook,  constituted  the  angles  of  a  triangle,  only 
some  seven  miles  apart,  stating  that,  if  these  three  points  were  only 
provided  with  such  ordnance  as  he  had  described,  there  would  thus  be 
formed  two  lines  of  defence  for  the  city, — namely,  an  outer  one  between 
Coney  Island  and  Sandy  Hook,  and,  secondly,  an  inner  line  between 
Coney  and  Staten  Islands,  should  the  first  be  successfully  passed,  as 
had  just  occurred ;  he  even  affirmed  that  one  properly-equipped  battery 


40 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 


where  Sandy  Hook  Light-House  stood  could  have  made  it  extremely 
difficult  to  j)ick  up  the  torpedoes  between  that  point  and  where  they 
had  now  arrived.  Mr.  Puncherry  further  went  on  to  add  that  the 
protection  of  these  waters  could  only  be  made  complete  by  a  large  navy; 
but  the  value  of  this  last  assertion  was  not  enhanced  by  his  explaining 
that  the  building  of  its  ships  should  be  strictly  confined  to  his  own 
yards. 

Nevertheless,  Mr.  Puncherry  was  quite  right  so  far  as  generalities 
went.  To  be  accurate,  the  fleet  had  anchored  during  the  night  off  the 
Dry  Romer  shoals.  At  the  point  where  the  Gedney  Channel  divides, 
like  the  prongs  of  a  pitchfork,  into  the  Main  Ship  and  the  Swash 
Channel,  the  fleet  had  separated  into  two  divisions,  the  smaller  vessels 
taking  the  latter,  and  the  larger  ones,  owing  to  their  greater  depth, 
the  Main  Channel.  This  had  brought  them  directly  o})})o.site  Sandy- 
Hook  I/ight,  and  much  closer  to  the  shore  than  the  Swash  Channel  did 
the  other  division.  Both  these  channels,  along  with  the  inlet  leading 
into  them,  had  been  sown  with  torpedoes,  with  sunken  mines,  and  with 
scuttled  vessels,  for  tliey  were  the  two  only  approaches  navigable  for 
ships  of  such  draught.  The  way  these  various  obstructions  were  dis- 
posed of,  however,  by  the  fleet,  offered  food  for  reflection  to  those  many 
estimable  people  who  consider  torpedoes  and  mines  sufficient  for  harbor 
defence.  In  the  first  place,  the  exact  location  of  most  of  these  was 
already  accurately  known,  as  I  have  explained,  and  the  sunken  vessels 
amply  proclaimed  their  own  locations.  Besides,  the  mines  and  many 
of  the  torpedoes  were  to  be  exploded  from  the  shore,  and  their  several 
bases  of  operations  were  protected  by  earthworks.  The  cannonading 
which  IMr.  Puncherry  had  first  heard  was  that  of  the  fleet  as  it  passed 
Sandy  Hook,  either  destroying  these  earthworks  with  their  two-thousand- 
pound  i)rojectiles,  or  shelling  out  the  garrisons,  thus  preventing  the 
mines  and  a  large  portion  of  the  other  torpedoes  from  being  utilized. 
Then  the  fleet  would  slowly  pass  over  the  now  harmless  position,  and 
anchor  just  beyond  it.  In  case  the  obstruction  was  a  sunken  vessel, 
the  Fang  would  dart  out  and  throw  a  dynamite  torpedo  from  a  curious 
deflecting  gun  that  she  carried  in  her  bows ;  or,  if  that  were  not  sufficient 
to  remove  it,  she  would  send  down  a  diver  who  would  deliberately  set 
to  work  to  blow  it  up. 

Heavy  guns  would  have  been  effective,  and  })roper  forts  or  batteries 
for  their  protection  were  needed,  because  without  them  the  mines  and 
the  torpedoes  that  were  connected  with  the  shores  could  not  even  be 
discharged.  Of  coui-se  I  include  under  the  head  of  "  torpedoes  con- 
nected with  the  shores"  the  controllable  class, — i.e.,  those  which  were  to 
be  sent  out  against  the  enemy  in  leading-strings,  so  to  speak.  Conse- 
quently, with  the  destruction  of  the  earthworks,  there  remained  only 
those  torpedoes  which,  anchored  in  the  channel,  were  to  be  exploded 
by  collision.  It  was  more  particularly  these  last  that  Mr.  Puncherry 
had  seen  the  Fang  remove. 

Indeed,  this  is  so  important  a  point  that  I  crave  the  indulgence  of  my 
readers  to  express  the  opinion  that,  except  in  rare  instances,  experience 
has  shown  torpedoes  to  be  a  delusion  and  a  snare,  and  as  dangerous  for 
the  one  side  as  for  the  other.     If  fleets  are  matched  against  fleets,  they 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  41 

obstruct  the  movements  of  each  fleet  equally ;  if,  on  the  other  hand, 
no  fleets  are  ready  to  engage  the  hostile  ships,  they  are  generally  harm- 
less ;  while  if  both  torpedo-boats  and  forts  do  not  co-operate  with  them, 
they  are  absolutely  useless.  Look  at  it  rationally.  Hostile  fleets  may 
vanquish  protecting  fleets ;  hostile  torpedo-boats  may  out-manoeuvre  pro- 
tecting torpedo-boats  ;  there  must  remain  forts  to  give  the  coup  degrdce. 

Without  these  various  auxiliaries  a  seaboard  city  is  handicapped  in 
its  defence,  and  resembles  a  pugilist  with  either  one  leg  or  one  arm, 
perhaps  both,  tied  up. 

As  regards  forts,  earthworks,  which  are  indispensable  for  some  pur- 
poses, can  yet  be  destroyed  by  shot,  the  largest  kindof  which  can  now 
])enetrate  through  seventy-five  feet  of  embankments ;  masonry  must  be 
more  than  twenty-four  feet  thick ;  while  even  iron,  unless  thirty  inches 
through,  is  useless  against  the  latest  Krupp  or  Armstrong  projectiles. 

At  this  point  Mr.  Puncherry  relieves  me  of  the  duty  of  entering 
into  further  particulars,  by  explaining  to  his  companions  that  the  only 
kind  of  protection  which  has  been  proved  capable  of  resisting  such 
guns  as  the  fleet  was  amply  provided  with  was  the  German  cast-iron 
dome,  such  as  forms  a  part  of  the  defence  of  Antwerp.  "  An  improve- 
ment in  this  dome  might  even  be  effected, '^  he  went  on  to  say,  "  by 
building  it  of  steel  in  the  manner  advised  by  Bessemer;  while  dis- 
appearing batteries  according  to  Gener-al  Sheridan^s  i)lan  have  many 
advocates."  Thus  Mr.  Puncherry  could  very  well  see  what  was  needed 
in  forts,  if  he  could  not  in  ships. 

.  But,  meanwhile,  the  fleet  had  arrived  ofi*  the  west  end  of  Coney 
Island,  and  a  second  cannonading  had  begun  from  the  batteries  there 
and  on  the  Staten  Island  shore.  The  fire  of  the  last  was  as  quickly 
silenced  as  that  of  Sandy  Hook,  but  to  the  fire  from  Coney  Island  the 
fleet  had  not  yet  replied.  Now,  the  reason  for  tliis  was  so  extraordinary 
that  I  fear  if  I  state  it  my  veracity  will  be  doubted.  The  fact  of  the 
matter  was,  that  Wang-Chi-Poo  suddenly  caught  sight  of  the  huge 
artificial  elephant  that  towers  over  the  cardboard  hotels  and  the  shingle 
palaces  of  Manhattan  Beach,  and  feared  to  excite  it  by  any  discharge 
of  his  heavy  ordnance  in  that  direction.  No  arguments  could  persuade 
him  that  it  was  not  alive,  and,  dreading  it  more  than  any  of  the  infernal 
machines  New  York  had  yet  sent  one  against  him  in  her  defence,  he 
allowed  the  rest  of  the  afternoon  to  glide  by  in  masterly  inactivity. 
Nor  did  the  fall  of  evening's  shades  arouse  him  from  his  stupor.  Thus 
closed  the  night,  and  any  inmates  that  the  shingle  palaces  and  the  card- 
board hotels  yet  contained  went  to  bed,  very  likely,  attributing  their 
immunity  less  to  the  guardianship  of  the  elephant  than  to  the  beauty 
of  the  edifices  reflected  in  the  waves  hard  by. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


It  is  some  five  hours  later,  and  Wang-Chi-Poo  is  seated  in  his 
cabin,  pretending  to  study  a  large  map ;  anon  he  looks  up  and  gazes 
about  him  absently. 

Wang-Chi-Poo  is  thinking  of  his  distant  home,  and  his  thoughts 


42  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

make  him  sad.  Wang-Chi-Poo  remembers  the  little  Wang-Chi-Poos, 
and  the  butterflies  lie  used  to  make  mount  into  the  air  for  them.  He 
can  see,  in  his  mind's  eye,  the  very  figure  of  the  bamboo  naat  on  which 
he  used  to  play  with  them,  and  can  hear  their  cries  of  delight  re-echo- 
ing in  his  ear  when  a  butterfly  would  fall  within  their  grasp. 

AfUir  all,  of  what  good  was  it  coming  to  this  barbarian  land,  where 
the  elephants  walked  on  the  tops  of  the  houses  and  took  their  meals 
out  of  chimney-pots?  Would  he  ever  be  permitted  to  return  home, — 
to  his  home  in  the  Flowery  Kingdom,  where  things  were  fixed  up  and 
regulated  as  things  should  be  ?  Alas  !  he  sometimes  felt  that  he  should 
never  return  again.  And  if  he  did  return,  what  would  his  wives  say 
when  he  suddenly  presented  to  them  the  fair  McFlusterer?  Ah,  it 
would  be  better  to  cut  their  nails  extremely  short  too.  Wang-Chi-Poo 
felt  very  sad,  and,  the  cabin  being  close,  he  went  up  on  deck.  Over- 
head it  was  a  lovely  night,  but  along  the  surface  of  the  water  lay  a 
heavy  mist.  Looking  shoreward,  he  imagined  he  could  make  out, 
every  now  and  then,  as  the  haze  lifted,  the  great  hotels  of  Coney  Island, 
which  he  had  naturally  taken  for  pagodas  erected  for  the  purposes  of 
woi-ship  by  these  strange  people.  He  could  feel  the  soft  land-breeze 
laden  witli  fragrance  blowing  on  him  gently  through  the  mist,  but  ever 
and  anon  his  gaze  reverted  to  the  spot  where  he  remembered  the  huge 
elephant  had  stood,  rising  high  above  the  pagodas. 

It  may  be  parenthetically  observed  that  anything  lofty  in  the  way 
of  a  building  is  thought  by  the  Chinese  to  deflect  and  dissipate  the  evil 
spirits  that  may  be  hovering  about  in  the  air.  Pagodas  are  thus  a 
kind  of  spiritual  lightning-rod ;  and,  to  prevent  any  unfair  advantage 
that  a  rich  man  might  have  by  the  rearing  of  a  lofty  edifice,  a  strict 
law  in  the  Celestial  Kingdom  rigidly  limits  the  height  of  all  buildings. 
Nurtured  in  this  belief,  the  very  height  of  these  buildings  had  appealed 
to  the  superstitious  side  of  his  nature,  and  he  looks  over  to  where  the 
elephant  ought  to  be,  and  shudders.  And,  as  he  stands  there,  he  begins 
to  think  he  can  dimly  make  out  its  huge  whitish  form  through  the 
mist,  and  he  looks  at  it  witli  a  strange  fascination ;  anon  he  can  almost 
fancy  it  is  moving,  and  certainly  it  does  seem  larger  than  his  recollec- 
tion of  it  in  the  afternoon  would  warrant.  Yes,  it  is  moving,  he  is 
sure,  it  is  growing  bigger,  too,  and  the  faint  mufiled  sound  as  of  some 
huge  beast  breasting  the  waves  suddenly  strikes  upon  his  ear.  Wang- 
Chi-Poo  feels  the  very  marrow  of  him  freeze.  His  legs  refuse  to  sup- 
port him  as  he  clutches  the  gunrail  to  sustain  himself.  He  must  be 
mistaken,  however ;  his  fears  are  father  to  his  thoughts ;  and  he  closes 
his  eyes  and  listens  intently.  First  he  thinks  himself  deceived,  then 
he  changes  his  opinion,  but  at  last  there  is  no  doubt, — the  noise  grows 
every  instant  more  distinct,  and  he  can  actually  hear  the  feet  of  the 
creature  striking  the  water  as  it  swims.  But  other  quigk  ears  have 
already  detected  the  noise,  and  the  electric  light  is.  suddenly  turned  on 
in  the  threatened  direction.  TJien,  surely  enough,  scarce  a  thousand 
yards  distant,  is  revealed  a  great  whitish  form,  rising  tier  above  tier, 
coming  mysteriously  out  of  the  misty  night.  As  they  gaze  upon  it, 
spellbound,  the  mass  seems  to  dissolve  into  many  parts,  each  pail,  like 
tlie  parent  mass,  rising  also  tier  above  tier  and  striking  out  for  a  sepa- 


A  DREAM  OF  CONqUEST.  43 

rate  vessel  of  the  fleet.  In  an  instant  the  flag-ship  is  alive.  In  re- 
sponse to  the  shrill  whistle  of  the  boatswain,  men  suddenly  aroused 
from  sleep  tumble  up  the  hatches  and,  seizing  what  arms  come  first  to 
hand,  rush  to  their  posts.  Not  a  moment  too  soon,  for,  quicker  than  I 
can  relate,  the  great  white  object  is  moving  down  upon  them  and  strikes 
them  with  a  terrible  thud,  blended  with  three  ringing  cheers  for  Uncle 
Sam. 

Waug-Chi-Poo  sees  a  torrent  of  men'  pour  down  from  the  upper 
parts  of  this  formidable  visitor,  and,  once  convinced  that  it  is  not  the 
elephant,  draws  his  gold-mounted  cutlass  from  its  scabbakl  and,  like 
the  brave  man  that  he  is,  calls  loudly  on  his  men.  Then,  alas,  what  a 
horrible  m^lee  ensued  in  the  glare  of  the  electric  lights  and  in  the  flash 
of  lauterus !— a  horrible  hand-to-hand  struggle  all  over  the  decks, 
with  quarter  for  no  one;  now  backward,  now  forward,  the  hip-hip- 
hurrahs  of  the  one  party  mingled  with  the  "  zing-yous,  zing-yous"  of 
the  Chinese.  Indeed,  the  last,  though  half  asleep^  fought  like  devils, 
but  the  elan  of  the  attacking  party  seemed  carrying  everything  before  it. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  thrown  herself  on  the  sofa  for  a  brief  nap, 
and  was  only  awakened  by  the  commotion  of  the  ship  preparing  for 
action.  Poor  woman  !  she  invariably  used  a  sofa  now,  that  she  might 
be  better  prepared  for  any  emergency.  She  could  hear  the  hurried 
tramp  of  men  as  they  crowded  up  the  hatchways,  and  the  hoarse  voices 
of  the  oflicers  as  they  gave  the  necessary  orders.  She  felt,  too,  the 
crash  of  the  vessel  striking  the  steamer,  and  the  dropping  of  men  as 
from  a  great  height  down  upon  the  decks  above  her  head.  Then  came 
that  awful  sound  of  fighting,  of  hacks  and  bloWs,  of  sudden  reports, 
of  sharp  crackling  discharges,  intermingled  with  cries  of  agony,  and 
cheers  for  her  patron  saiut. 

I  can  imagine  no  more  thrilling  situation  than  the  prisoners  founa 
themselves  in.  They  knew,  of  qourse,  that  some  desperate  attempt  was 
being  made  to  carry  the  steamer  from  under  the  very  feet  of  their 
captors,  and  waited  the  issue — an  issue  fraught  with  so  much  con- 
sequence to  themselves — with  bated  breath.  They  could  distinctl)r 
trace  the  tide  of  battle,  too,  as  it  ebbed  and  flowed  up  and  down  the 
deck,  for  now  the  American  cheers  would  prevail,  and  now  again 
the  cries  of  the  Chinese.  Finally  the  Chinese,  it  was  evident,  were 
being  driven  back :  their  battle-shouts  grew  fainter  as  those  of  the 
Americans  grew  louder  and  more  enthusiastic, — so  loud  and  enthusi- 
astic a<  to  pve  the  captives  the  im})ression  that  their  fellow-countrymen 
were  victorious. 

But  then,  at  the  very  instant  of  Mrs.  McFlusterer^s  expected  de- 
liverance, in  the  crisis  of  her  delightful  anticipation  of  being  set  free, 
her  ecstasy  was  changed  to  a  chill  horror  that  riveted  her  to  the  floor 
where  she  stood. 

Once  when  the  boatswain  was  practising  the  crew  in  the  various 
calJs  of  his  whistle,  Taonsu  had  explained  that  a  certain  one  of  them 
was  the  signal  for  blow'ing  up  the  vessel.  It  was  this  call  she  now 
distinctly  heard.  It  ran  through  the  ship  like  wildfire,  stilling  in  an 
instant  the  combat,  and  petrifying  each  contestant  with  the  dread  of 
instant  annihilation. 


44  A   DREAM   OF  COXQVEST. 

But  what  is  this?  At  the  very  moraent  she  thonglit  her  last,  the 
combat  is  renewed,  the  "  zing-yous,  zing-yous"  of  the  Chinamen  are 
heard  again,  in  the  very  teeth  of  their  enemies'  success.  It  was  as  if 
the  tide  had  'been  suddeidy  turned  by  some  unexpected  occurrence  in 
favor  of  their  captors.  For  some  five  minutes  the  suspense  continued, 
then  the  cheers  for  Uncle  Sam  grew  fewer  and  fewer,  fainter  and  more 
indistinct,  and  a  hush  as  of  tlie  grave  fell  on  all  things,  followed  by  an 
explosion  as  of  a  distant  ship. 

When  Mrs.  McFlusterer  looked  about  her,  Mr.  Puncherry  lay  in 
a  (lead  faint  upon  the  floor,  while  her  husband  was  rocking  to  and  fro, 
completely  beside  himself,  and  gibbering  to  himself  like  one  of  those 
foolish  old  crones  we  read  of  in  Lever's  novels. 

She  heard  the  splash,  splash,  splash  as  of  bodies  hastily  flung  one 
after  another  into  the  waves,  and  the  next  instant  the  vessel,  still  hard 
alongside  of  the  flag-shif),  went  down  with  such  suddenness  that  the 
iron-clad  seemed  likely  to  be  swallowed  up  in  the  vortex  of  disturbed 
water. 

And  in  truth  the  combat,  if  short,  had  been  decisive,  and  that  it 
had  not  resulted  in  the  success  of  the  Americans  was  owing  solely  to 
the  fact  that  only  about  one  man  in  ten  had  reached  the  enemy's  deck. 
Though  the  upper  decks  of  their  steamer  towered  over  those  of  the 
flag-ship,  the  distance  to  jump  was  wide,  and  so  great  had  been  the 
anxiety  to  board,  and  the  consequent  confusion,  that  the  greater  number 
of  the  assailants  fell  between  the  two  vessels'  sides.  Those  that  did 
arrive  in  safety  were  many  of  them  strained  and  hurt  by  their  leap, 
and  were  received  with  repeated  discharges  from  the  Hotchkiss  and 
Gatling  guns  that  decimated  their  ranks ;  nevertheless,  so  great  was 
the  enthusiasm  of  the  Americans  that  at  first  they  carried  everything 
before  them,  and  the  signal  was  actually  given  to  blow  up  the  ship,  on 
the  supposition  of  her  capture.  It  was  at  this  moment,  this  supreme 
emergency,  that  Wang-Chi-Poo,  who  had  been  swept  by  the  tide  of 
battle  far  back  into  the  stern,  succeeded  in  disengaging  himself  and 
saved  his  vessel.  He  had  noticed  a  large,  powerful  man  at  the  head 
of  the  boarding  force,  and  thought  if  he  could  only  succeed  in  putting 
him  hcxi's  de  combat,  the  others,  being  few,  could  be  quickly  mastered. 
As  soon  as  he  was  free,  therefore,  he  sought  him  out  and  faced  him ; 
an  instant  the  two  leaders  stood  there,  as  if  measuring  each  other's 
prowess,  when,  suddenly  stamping  his  foot,  Wang-Chi-Poo  flung  his 
cutlass  with  an  unexpected  flourish  in  the  air,  flashed  open  his  fan  with 
a  snap  directly  in  his  enemy's  eyes,  and,  taking  advantage  of  his  aston- 
ishment at  such  an  unusual  attack,  squatted  down  and  seized  him  about 
the  middle,  then,  summoning  all  his  strength  in  one  concentrated  effort, 
he  flung  him  clean  over  his  head,  far  over  the  bulwarks,  into  the  sea. 

It  was  this  contest  between  the  champions  that  stayed  the  command 
to  fire  the  magazine,  and  its  issue  that  revived  the  drooping  spirits  of 
the  Chinese. 

But  Wang-Chi-Poo's  blood  was  up :  as  in  the  case  of  many  other 
men,  success  alone  was  needed  to  bring  out  his  mettle,  and  after  this 
his  shining  cutlass  was  seen  gleaming  in  the  rays  of  the  electric  lights, 
and,  like  the  sword  of  Mohammed,  devouring  all  before  it.    It  was  not 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  45 

till  tlie  dead  (for  no  wounded  were  left)  had  been  flung  one  after  the 
other  into  the  waves,  and  tlie  decks  cleared  of  the  most  ghastly  evidence 
of  the  combat,  that  Wang-Chi-Poo  looked  abont  him. 

Of  the  fleet,  one  vessel  had  been  captured  by  the  Americans,  and 
had  been  blown  up  under  the  captors'  feet.  Warned  in  time  by  the 
flag-ship,  the  other  vessels  of  the  fleet  had  either  sunk  the  several  vessels 
of  the  attacking  party  as  they  advanced,  or  had  so  crippled  them  that 
they  failed  to  reach  their  destinations. 

^One  of  these  vessels,  however,  was  almost  stripped  of  its  courageous 
legions  by  their  own  anxiety  to  get  at  the  foe,  for,  crowding  pell-mell 
to  the  side  on  which  they  were  to  board,  they  had  caused  the  vessel  to 
topple  over  so  far  as  to  spill  the  greater  number  into  the  cruel  waves. 

The  cries  of  these  unfortunates  gave  additional  horror  to  the  situa- 
tion, and  a  lurid  light  was  thrown  upon  the  scene  by  another  vessel 
catching  fire  and  subsequently  blowing  up. 

Thus  we  have  in  this  second  combat  another  glorious  example  of 
American  pluck.  That  its  success  was  hindered  by  so  trivial  a  fact  as 
Wang-Chi-Poo's  superstitious  horror  of  an  elephant  will  rob  it  in  no 
wise  of  its  historic  lustre. 

Thus,  too,  was  destroyed  at  one  fell  swoop  a  large  part  of  New 
York's  summer  fleet  of  travel,  and  the  waves  for  many  a  day  after- 
wards were  littered  with  boats  and  life-preservers,  pieces  of  wreck  and 
debris,  bearing  such  peaceful  names  as  the  Bristol,  the  Day-Dream,  or 
the  Mary  Powell. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


In  a  little  shop  in  the  lower  portion  of  the  threatened  city  a  shirt- 
maker  named  Smith  plied  his  peaceful  trade.  He  was  an  odd  man 
in  some  respects,  but  a  conspicuous  illustration  of  the  versatility  of 
American  genius.  A  shirt-maker,  as  we  say,  by  calling,  he  had  during 
his  idle  moments  turned  his  attention  to  inv'entions,  and  had  perfected 
a  boat  that  could  be  propelled  under  water  at  will.  With  this  he 
claimed  that  he  was  able  to  conquer  the  greatest  fleets  of  the  world  in 
detachments.  He  had  certainly  given  several  successful  exhibitions  of 
his  boat  long  before  the  war  was  dreamed  of,  and  had  clearly  demon- 
strated the  fact  that  he  could  guide  her  at  a  high  rate  of  speed  under 
water. 

Worked  by  a  small  "  fireless  engine,"  in  Avhich  the  motive  power 
was  a  solution  of  caustic  soda,  she  carried  a  large  supply  of  compressed 
air  for  breathing  purposes,  thus  enabling  the  inventor  to  extend  his 
submarine  voyages,  as  he  expressed  it,  "  for  as  long  a  time  as  his  canned 
tomatoes  held  out." 

She  was  thirty  feet  long,  seven  and  a  half  feet  wide,  six  feet  deep, 
with  room  for  holding  two  persons  comfortably. 

From  the  nose  of  this  boat,  like  the  proboscis  of  a  sword-fish,  ex- 
tended a  spar,  on  the  extreme  end  of  which  was  fixed  a  glass  cylinder 
for  nitro-glycerin. 

The  proposal  of  this  intrepid  man  had  been  to  start  out  by  himself 


46  A    DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

and,  single-lianded,  to  encounter  the  whole  fleet  as  they  sailed  np  the 
coast,  for  in  his  own  opinion  the  work  of  the  authorities  "  didn't  amount 
to  shucks." 

It  was  not,  however,  till  the  fleet  had  arrived  off  Sandy  Hook  that 
his  arrangements  were  completed,  and  he  had  left  the  city  at  the  same 
time  with  the  huge  flotilla  whose  destruction  has  been  recorded  in  the 
j)receding  chapter. 

Nevertheless,  as  yet  he  had  fiiiled  to  put  in  an  appearance,  and 
Mrs.  McF'lusterer  was  awakened  the  second  morning  by  the  peaceful 
cadence  of  the  donkey-engine  again  hoisting  the  anchors,  and  the  roar 
of  the  boilers  again  getting  up  steam.  Brief  as  it  had  proved,  the 
respite  was  a  much  needed  one,  for  the  poor  lady  had  already  learned 
that  a  trip  in  a  hostile  fleet  coming  to  attack  one's  own  country  was 
more  to  he  dreaded  than  even  a  cruise  in  the  Terror.  The  horrors  of 
her  position  were  indeed  accumulating  up  to  a  point  beyond  which  she 
thought  she  would  soon  lose  all  reason. 

To  make  matters  worse,  the  terrible  barbarian  seemed  actually  in 
love  with  her,  and  would  seize  every  available  chance  to  escape  from 
the  deck  and  to  pass  the  time  in  her  socnety,  intruding  as  an  unwelcome 
guest  at  the  prisoners'  meals,  and  bringing  along  the  interpreter,  who 
would  explain  what  was  going  on. 

Now,  sometimes  a  small  and  comparatively  trivial  incident  will 
make  a  more  lasting  impression  than  the  most  momentous  calamity. 
There  was  nothing  in  all  that  she  had  gone  through,  nothing  in  all  that 
was  yet  to  come,  nothing  even  in  the  event  that  was  immediately  to 
follow  it,  or  indeed  in  any  circumstance  connected  with  her  capture, 
that  remained  so  indelibly  stamped  upon  Mrs.  McFlusterer's  memory 
as  the  one  I  am  about  to  relate.  It  occurred  this  very  morning  towards 
the  close  of  breakfast,  to  which  tlie  commissioner  and  his  shadow, 
Taonsu,  had  as  usual  invited  themselves. 

A  glass  bowl,  with  half  a  dozen  goldfish  swimming  about  in  it, 
had  just  been  placed  on  the  breakfast-table,  and  Taonsu  was  explain- 
ing that  they  had  been  brought  out  as  a  delicacy  in  sj)ecial  reservoirs 
on  board  the  ship,  when  the  servant  in  attendance,  darting  into  the 
bowl  a  sharp-pronged  fork,  harpooned  one  of  the  fish,  and,  proceeding 
to  split  the  quivering  body  down  the  middle  with  a  knife,  deposited 
one  half  upon  the  lady's  plate.  The  prisoners  jumped  from  their  seats 
in  a  body.  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  placing  her  handkerchief  to  her  eyes, 
with  a  shudder,  went  as  usual  into  hysterics ;  Mr.  McFlusterer  seized 
the  bowl  and  threw  it  out  the  port-hole ;  while  Mr.  Puncherry  punched 
the  head  of  that  servant  till  he  collapsed,  a  jellified  mass,  on  the  floor, 
and,  facing  the  astonished  Wang-Chi-Poo  and  his  interpreter,  glared 
upon  them  like  a  veritable  god  aroused.  How  this  ebullition  of  feel- 
ing would  have  been  received  will  remain  forever  unknown,  for  at  this 
moment  a  strange  sensation,  as  of  the  ship's  bottom  being  violently 
assaulted,  as- it  were,  by  the  proboscis  of  some  submarine  monster, 
changed  the  temper  of  all  to  sudden  alarm.  Wang-Chi-Poo  himself, 
springing  to  his  feet  escaped  to  the  deck,  and,  Taonsu  immediately  fol- 
lowing, the  prisoners  were  left  to  themselves. 

Mr.  Puncherry  was  the  first  to  break  the  dread  silence.     "  It's  a 


A    DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  47 

sword-fish  !"  he  exclaimed,  aghast ;  "  I  know  it^s  a  sword-fish  :  one  of 
them  sunk  the  best  steel-armored  vessel  I  ever  built,  down  in  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico.  This  must  be  a  far  bigger  fellow  than  that,  though.  Great 
Scott !  here  it  comes  again !''  he  cried,  as  the  same  mysterious  attack 
was  repeated.  Then,  as  the  three  captives  stood  awaiting  whatever 
doom  the  assault  foreboded,  a  deafening  report  was  heard,  the  vessel 
seemed  to  rise  up  under  their  very  feet,  and  they  felt  a  shock  as 
of  a  husce  column  of  water  descendinsc  on  the  deck  above  their  heads. 
Presently  the  whistles  blew,  the  bells  rang,  and  the  vessel  came  to  a 
dead  stop.  . 

While  the  unfortunate  captives  were  regaining  their  composure  as 
best  they  could,  the  commissioner  and  Taonsu  were  on  deck  engaged  in 
setting  a  huge  wire  netting  about  the  ship,  called,  in  nautical  language, 
a  crinoline.  This,  Mr.  Puncherry  finally  recovered  himself  enough  to 
explain,  was  intended  to  protect  the  vessel  against  horizontal  attacks 
beneath  the  water-line.  Parenthetically,  we  may  observe  that,  except 
for  her  distance  from  the  shore,  her  petticoats  would  have  been  spread 
to  little  purpose,  since  a  distinguished  officer  of  the  army,  who  had 
spent  several  years"  in  bringing  to  perfection  a  new  form  of  air-gun, 
thought  the  present  a  favorable  opportunity  for  opening  fire  upon  the 
fleet.  So  extraordinary  was  this  invention  that  it  warrants  a  moment's 
notice.  Sixty  feet  in  length,  it  resembled  an  enormous  astronomical 
telesco])e  on  wheels,  pointed  reversely,  and  w^as  braced  by  supports  not 
unlike  an  elevated  railroad.  It  carried  a  cylindrical  brass  torpedp, 
holding  a  charge  of  sixty  pounds  of  dynamite,  and  by  a  deflection  of 
aim,  according  to  the  distance,  the  missile  was  calculated  to  enter  the 
waves  and  to  explode  under  the  ship.  The  government  did  not  own 
this  gun,  but  it  was  coquetting  with  the  inventor  for  its  purchase,  since 
its  balance  was  so  nice,  and  its  mechanical  arrangements  so -perfect, 
that  but  one  artilleryman  was  required  to  manage  it, — an  all-important 
consideration  for  a  seaboard  depending  on  a  series  of  Sergeant  McKennas 
for  its  protection. 

The  name  of  the  redoubtable  weapon  was  the  Pneumatic  Dynamite 
Torpedo  Gun,  and  its  discharge  had  caused  little  noise,  no  smoke,  and 
as  yet  no  damage. 

AVith  his  machine  the  inventor  had  just  commenced  a  series  of  ex- 
periments on  his  own  hook,  from  behind  a  hastily-constructed  earth- 
work. The  only  trouble  was  that  the  Chinese,  being  perfectly  instructed 
in  the  flight  of  all  such  projectiles,  kept  not  less  than  five  thousand  yards 
from  shore,  the  outside  range  of  tliis  particular  piece  of  ordnance  being 
four  thousand  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards. 

The  flag-ship  in  the  mean  time  was  only  just  moving,  and  it  suddenly 
occurred  to  Wang-Chi-Poo'to  utilize  the  occasion  by  the  punishment  of 
the  lookouts  for  not  having  sooner  detected  the  enemy  the  previous 
night.  For  this  purpose  one  of  the  large  bamboo  cages  in  which  it 
had  been  proposed  to  confine  Messrs.  Puncherry  and  McFlusterer  was 
brought  into  requisition,  and  heavy  shot  were  chained  to  the  bottom  of 
it.  Then  the  five  culprits  w^ere  put  into  it  and  the  cage  was  dropped 
over  the  ship's  side.  Of  course  it  was  not  allowed  to  sink  immediately, 
but  was  only  submerged  for  some  thirty  seconds  and  then  tantalizingly 


4g  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

pulled  up  by  a  rope :  this  having  been  repeated  some  half-dozen  times, 
the  end  of  the  rope  was  let  go. 

This  entertaining  little  diversion  occurred  just  under  the  cabin 
port-hole,  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer  could  see  the  agonized  faces  of  the 
men,  like  those  of  five  drowning  rats,  pressed  against  the  bars  on  each 
occasion  that  the  cage  was  pulled  up.  It  did  not  tend  to  cheer  her, 
or  to  raise  her  opinion  of  the  people  among  whom  she  found  herself 
placed. 

Mr.  Puncherry  and  Mr.  McFlusterer,  to  whom  the  sight  was  hardly 
less  rej)ellent,  sought  relief  to  their  feelings  by  observing  the  antics  of 
the  Fang,  which  kept  continually  circling  about  the  ship.  Indeed,  the 
way  she  twisted  and  waltzed  around  her  monster  charge  in  her  solicitude 
to  ward  off  any  conceivable  danger  was  most  diverting.  Each  ship  of 
the  fleet  had  just  such  a  zealous  little  champion  too,  only  the  Fang  was 
superior  to  them  all. 

Mr.  Puncherry  confessed  that,  had  as  many  of  these  boats  been 
available  for  our  defence  as  were  possessed  by  the  enemy,  the  fleet 
might  very  likely  have  been  kept  outside  Sandy  Hook  to  this  time. 
"  If  we  will  spend  all  the  resources  of  the  nation,'*  said  he,  "  in 
widening  our  Little  Log- Rolling  Creeks,  of  course  nothing  remains  for 
protecting  our  harbors."  Mr.  Puncherry  highly  disapproved  of  wasting 
any  money  outside  of  his  own  shipyards. 

All  the  rest  of  the  day  the  fleet  lay-to,  or  when  it  did  advance 
it  only  moved  at  a  snail's  pace,  backing  and  turning,  now  stopping 
completely,  and  progressing  barely  three  miles  the  entire  afternoon. 
Indeed,  they  had  been  simply  going  around  in  a  circle,  searching  the 
most  effective  position  for  the  attack  upon  the  city,  and  waiting  for 
the  co-operation  of  the  other  squadron  expected  to  arrive  at  Throgg's 
Neck  or  near  it,  in  Long  Island  Sound.  At  five  o'clock  the  huge 
chains  were  heard  rasping  their  way  through  the  hawser-holes  as  the 
great  Leviathan  came  to  her  final  stop. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


TnfeY  had  been  at  anchor  barely  half  an  hour,  when  an  extraordinary 
sight  was  beheld.  It  was  nothing  less  than  a  huge  flag,  apparently 
supported  on  nothing,  and  floating  down  towards  the  fleet,  like  a  sign 
from  heaven,  along  the  water.  On  a  nearer  approach  the  miracle  was 
revealed,  for  the  boat  (a  steam-launch)  that  carried  the  flag  was  so 
narrow  that  she  had  simply  been  invisible  before.  On  she  came,  un- 
doubtedly the  bearer  of  a  flag  of  truce,  since  the  flag  was  white.  Tht 
ecstasy  of  the  prisoner?  ran  better  be  imagined  than  described  as  they 
detected  her  approach,  which  was,  however,  cautious,  permitting  the 
flag  to  wave  to  one  side  instead  of  straight  out  backward. 

You  ask,  perhaps,  how^  it  was  that  the  prisoners  could  be  so  well 
aware  of  everything  that  was  going  on :  the  fact  will  be  appreciated 
when  I  explain  that  the  cabin,  being  in  the  stern,  ran  directly  across 
the  ship,  and  that  there  were  three  port-holes,  one  on  each  side  and  one 
astern.     As  each  captive  had  a  port-hole  and  passed  most  of  the  weary 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  49 

time  while  confined  below  before  it,  a  pretty  good  lookout  was  main 
tained  in  every  direction  except  forward. 

"  Yes,  I  told  you  it  was  a  flag  of  truce !"  cried  Mr.  Puncherry. 
"  It's  probably  the  result  of  a  spontaneous  rising  to  demand  my  sur- 
render. I'll  be  extremely  sorry  to  leave  you  both,"  he  continued, 
turning  to  his  fellow-captives,  "  but  you  see,  in  their  emergency,  the 
American  people  require  my  services.'' 

"  Why,  she's  full  of  men !"  ejaculated  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  whose 
attention  was  so  absorbed  that  she  had  failed  to  hear  Mr.  Puncherry's 
remarks,  ''  and  they  seem  to  be  all  writing.     How  odd  !" 

"  At  all  events,  they'll  bring  us  the  latest  news  of  the  market,  who- 
ever they  are  !"  exclaimed  Mr.  McF.,  with  a  sigh  of  relief.  '*  It's  quite 
awful  to  have  been  away  so  long,  when  you  come  to  think  of  it." 

'*  Why,  they're  reporters !"  suddenly  exclaimed  Mr.  Puncherry, 
straining  his  eyes  very  severely.  "  Upon  my  word,  it's  very  kind  of 
them.  You  see,  I  own  a  hundred  shares  of  the  Trumpety  and  they've 
probably  come  to  carry  me  back  with  them." 

In  the  mean  while  the  launch  continued  to  advance,  raising  the 
hopes  of  the  party  to  fever-heat.  At  the  moment  when  all  were  sure 
that  she  was  coming  to  board  the  steamer,  she  turned  as  on  a  pivot ; 
then  of  a  sudden,  the  opposite  side  of  the  flag  being  presented,  appeared 
in  large  and  startling  letters,  "  Read  the  New  York  Trumpet  Half  a 
million  circulation."  The  next  instant  she  was  flying  back  over  the 
water  with  a  speed  that  was  in  sharp  contrast  to  her  cautious  coming. 

The  indignation  and  disappointment  of  the  captives  knew  no  bounds. 
Mr.  McFlusterer,  in  his  despair  of  learning  the  condition  of  the  market, 
craned  his  long  neck  far  out  of  the  port-hole  and  piteously  cried  after 
them  to  at  least  inform  him  of  the  latest  quotations  in  Erie.  Mr. 
Puncherry,  from  his  port-hole,  angrily  shook  his  fist ;  while  the  lady, 
with  the  true  sentimentality  that  distinguished  her,  dropped  from  hers 
a  silent  tear  to  mingle  with  the  sad  and  cruel  waves. 

Regardlessly,  however,  the  launch  kept  on  her  way,  if  we  can  so 
express  a  retreat  that  partook  in  its  velocity  of  the  nature  of  a  projectile 
hurled  from  a  gun.  Indeed,  it  was  even  more  rapid  ;  for  when  the  fleet 
appreciated  that  a  flag  of  truce  had  been  merely  raised  as  a  subterfuge, 
they  opened  fire,  only  to  perceive  that  their  shots  barely  caught  up  with 
her.  Perhaps  you  will  moderate  your  astonishment  when  I  explain 
that  the  little  vessel  was  no  other  than  the  world-renowned  Daisy,  and 
that  Mr.  Puncherry  had  had  so  little  to  do  with  her  construction  that 
his  eye  had  never  so  much  as  fallen  upon  her  before  this  moment, — it 
having  been  computed  that  by  merely  looking  at  a  vessel  he  knocked 
off  five  knots  per  hour  from  her  speed. 

During  the  night  the  Fang  and  her  fellow  mosquito-boats  atoned 
for  their  failure  to  apprehend  the  Daisy,  by  announcing  the  advance  of 
a  large  army  of  men  in  life-buoy  suits,  led  by  the  indomitable  Captain 
Buoy  himself.  Each  swimmer  carried  a  hand-grenade  of  dynamite ;  but  as 
it  has  been  deemed  necessary  to  fill  the  latest-invented  projectiles  with  five 
hundred  pounds  of  the  same,  and  as  the  sides  of  the  larger  vessels  were 
twenty-five  inches  thick,  these  missiles,  containing  less  tJian  six  pounds 
of  explosive,  would  presumably  have  had  little  effect.  Besides,  it  would 
4 


50  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

have  been  necessary  to  fling  them  over  the  nets  which  were  hung  a  dis- 
tance of  twenty  or  thirty  feet  from  their  iron  walls.  ^  In  fact,  however, 
few  of  the  swimmers  were  allowed  to  approach  within  a  mile,  and  such 
as  got  nearer  and  within  the  rays  of  the  electric  lights  were  immediately 
opened  upon  by  sharp-shooters  and  Gatling  guns  from  the  ships.  The 
pop,  pop,  pop,  as  the  bullets  penetrated  the  wind-inflated  suits,  sug- 
gestecl  a  sharp  cross-fire  upon  a  consignment  of  large  and  tightly-corkSi 
champagne-bottles  floated  down  by  the  tide. 

It  was  late  the  ensuing  morning  when  Mrs.  McFlusterer  was 
awakened  by  the  loud  knocks  of  an  attendant,  who  hurriedly  explained 
that  her  husband  was  wanted  on  deck.  As  it  happened,  this  summons 
interrupted  a  blood-curdling  dream  touching  the  instant  execution  of 
this  very  gentleman.  In  the  confusion  of  her  hurried  awakening  she 
imagined  that  his  last  moment  had  come.  Wildly  she  clung  to  him. 
She  was  convinced  that  he  was  to  be  cast  into  the  sea  at  the  very  least, 
and  reiterated  and  reiterated  again  her  convictions,  between  her  parox- 
ysms of  grief. 

There  are  some  occasions,  I  am  sorry  to  confess  it,  when  the  tears 
of  a  woman  are  a  nuisance, — when,  for  instance,  they  are  accompanied  by 
the  reiterated  lamentation  that  you  are  to  be  flung  overboard  as  food  for 
fishes.  Besides,  Mr.  McFlusterer  was  not  of  a  particularly  impressiona- 
ble temperament,  and  he  hated  tears.  This  will  perhaps  account  for  the 
almost  rude  manner  in  which  he  broke  away  from  his  wife. 

Mr.  McFlusterer,  as  he  gained  the  deck,  hesitated  for  a  moment  and 
surveyed  the  scene.  The  fleet  must  have  moved  down  nearer  the  city 
during  the  early  morning,  and  New  York — or,  more  strictly  speaking, 
Jersey  City — was  suddenly  disclosed  through  the  Narrows  as  if  a  veil 
had  been  lifted,  with  its  spires  and  pinnacles,  its  steeples  and  its  towers, 
as  brightly  shining  as  if  neither  terror  nor  dismay  were  crouching  at 
their  base.  The  fleet  was  at  least  seven  miles  away,  but  in  the  clear 
morning  light  the  buildings  looked  quite  distinct.  Close  to  the  left;  lay 
Staten  Island,  with  its  smart  villas  and  large  hotels. 

On  the  davits  Mr.  McFlusterer  found  a  steam-launch  with  steam 
already  up,  and  in  her  bows  a  staiF  bearing  a  white  flag.  Taonsu  was 
already  seated  in  her  stern,  and,  at  his  direction,  the  prisoner  took  his 
place  alongside  of  him.  Mr.  McFlusterer  was  of  a  philosophical  cast 
of  mind,  and  long  ere  now  had  resigned  himself  to  the  inevitable.  At 
all  events,  being  let  down  into  the  sea  with  a  stout  launch  between 
him  and  the  water  was  better  than  being  flung  headlong  into  the 
waves.  He  even  began  to  congratulate  himself  on  the  prospects  offered 
by  the  flag  of  truce  of  learning  at  last  the  condition  of  the  market. 
Poor  man !  he  little  knew  what  was  before  him. 

Once  clear  of  the  steamer,  Taonsu  removed  from  his  pockets  a 
couple  of  formal-looking  documents,  bearing  large  seals  and  directed  in 
English.  One  of  these,  Taonsu  proceeded  to  explain,  was  to  be  left  by 
Mr.  McFlusterer  at  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  the  other  at  the  City 
Hall.  As  the  city  authorities,  in  all  likelihood,  would  be  obliged  to 
consult  the  State  Department,  time  was  allowed  to  communicate  by 
telegraph  with  Washington.  Taonsu  then  went  on  to  add  that,  in  case 
he,  Mr.  McFlusterer,  failed  to  meet  the  steam-launch  at  four  o'clock,  on 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  5I 

Its  return  to  the  fleet  his  wife  and  Mr.  Puncherry  should  both  suffer 
the  penalty  assigned  by  the  Chinese  criminal  code  to  parricides ;  that 
is,  they  would  be  chopped  into  the  finest  mincemeat,  peppered  and 
salted,  fried  in  lard,  and  then  served  to  the  crew  as  a  special  delicacy 
for  su])per. 

Mr.  McFlusterer  was  looking  forward,  moodily  taking  in  these 
agreeable  particulars,  with  his  eyes  resting  on  what  seemed  an  enormous 
dead  fish  floating  on  the  water  some  five  hundred  yards  ahead.  Be- 
fore they  had  arrived  sufficiently  near  to  decide  as  to  its  exact  nature, 
the  object  mysteriously  sank.  Taonsu,  however,  resumed  his  instruc- 
tions, and  was  just  explaining  what  was  to  be  done  in  case  no  answer 
was  received  from  the  State  Department,  when  the  mysterious  object 
rose  suddenly  alongside  of  the  boat  like  a  thing  of  life,  and  with  a 
puff  of  smoke  unexpectedly  gave  utterance  to  a  violent  snort.  The 
consternation  of  the  crew,  some  half  a  dozen  all  told,  on  recognizing 
at  last  their  dread  enemy  the  Demon  of  the  Sea,  can  be  imagined. 
Taonsu  seized  the  rudder  from  the  palsied  hands  of  the  helmsman,  and 
directed  that  the  highest  pressure  of  steam  should  be  put  on.  Then 
began  the  most  terrible  race  that  probably  the  New  World  has  ever 
witnessed,  and  certainly  the  Old  has  never  surpassed  it.  Every  now 
and  again  the  monster  would  make  a  dash,  which  it  took  all  the  skill 
of  Taonsu  to  avoid ;  sometimes  under  water,  and  sometimes  above  the 
surface,  whither  it  would  rise  as  if  to  gain  fresh  air  or  a  clearer  view 
so  as  to  direct  another  charge.  The  speed  of  pursuer  and  pursued  was 
80  nearly  matched  that  fortunately  when  the  Demon  would  go  beneath 
the  waves  he  would  lose  ground,  and,  as  if  becoming  convinced  of  this 
at  last,  he  confined  himself  principally  to  the  surface,  snorting  with 
indignation  and  lashing  the  sea  into  foam  as  he  surged  on :  neverthe- 
less he  would  now  and  then  plunge  downward,  dive  under  the  boat, 
and,  emerging  into  view  on  the  opposite  side,  try  the  same  game  there. 
After  one  of  these  submersions,  he  was  on  the  surface  again,  and  evi- 
dently making  one  last  desperate  effort  to  get  sufficient  distance  ahead 
to  turn  and  destroy  the  launch.  The  increased  steam  was  beginning 
to  tell,  however,  and,  after  passing  through  the  Narrows,  they  raced 
for  fully  two  miles  side  by  side,  each  straining  every  nerve.  Now  the 
steam-launch  appeared  gaining,  now  the  Demon.  Finally,  as  they 
were  rounding  the  cheese-box  fortress  on  Governor's  Ipland,  the 
monster  with  one  last  effort  redoubled  its  exertions,  and  gained  by  a 
spurt  some  fifty  feet,  then  with  a  downward  plunge  he  disappeared. 
A  tremendous  explosion  followed ;  a  large  column  of  water  rose  into 
the  air,  and  the  boat  rocked  like  an  egg-shell  in  a  pool  of  Niagara  as 
countless  numbers  of  dead  or  stunned  fish  rose  slowly  to  the  surface. 
Taonsu,  by  a  rapid  appreciation  of  the  danger,  had  put  the  helm  hard 
a-port,  and  had  only  avoided  annihilation  by  an  inch.  It  was  a  terrible 
experience ;  but  the  crew,  after  their  first  astounded  bewilderment,  had 
displayed  the  utmost  stoicism. 

The  coming  of  the  steam-launch  had  been  telegraphed  to  the  city, 
and  Mr.  McFlusterer,  more  dead  than  alive,  was  put  ashore  at  the 
Battery.  An  enormous  crowd  was  in  waiting  to  receive  him,  but,  dis- 
engaging himself  from  these,  he  took  a  cab,  and  drove  directly  to  the 


52 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 


office  of  the  Mayor.  His  instructions  were  clear  and  explicit ;  and, 
after  depositing  one  of  the  documents  in  the  hands  of  that  official,  who 
happened  to  be  engaged  in  writing  one  of  his  famous  letters  on  the 
situation  generally,  Mr.  McFlusterer  proceeded  directly  to  the  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  where  he  left  the  second  document,  the  crowd  accom- 
panying him  all  the  way  and  much  impeding  his  progress  in  their 
anxiety  to  learn  all  that  they  could  about  their  dreaded  foes. 

Next  Mr.  McFlusterer  stopped  at  his  own  office,  and  remained 
closeted  with  his  confidential  clerk  for  at  least  an  hour.  He  had  not 
intended  going  to  the  Stock  Exchange,  but,  as  his  office  was  in  its 
immediate  vicinity,  the  temptation  to  visit  his  old  haunts  once  more 
proved  irresistible.  The  scene  here  beggars  description ;  even  his 
presence  at  first  was  lost  sight  of  in  the  general  hubbub.  Huge  blocks 
of  stock  were  being  offered  at  unheard-of  sacrifices,  and,  more  from 
force  of  habit — namely,  to  buy  when  things  were  cheap — than  from 
belief  in  their  present  value,  Mr.  McFlusterer  found  himself  purchasing 
whatever  was  put  up.  Indeed,  he  soon  became  aware  that  he  was  the 
only  buyer,  and,  lest  he  should  be  compelled  to  support  the  entire 
market,  he  at  last  retired. 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

The  Chamber  of  Commerce  had  been  convened  in  extra  session, 
but,  like  most  extra  sessions,  it  decided  on  nothing  definite ;  consequently, 
Mr.  McFlusterer  repaired  from  there  to  the  Mayor's  office  again,  only 
to  learn  that  no  reply  had  yet  been  received  from  Washington  relative 
to  the  terms  proposed  by  the  invaders.  Leaving  word,  therefore,  that 
should  any  news  come  it  should  be  sent  down  by  messenger  to  the 
steam-launch,  he  went  back  to  the  Battery,  as  the  time  for  his  return 
to  the  fleet  was  drawing  on.  Here  for  a  brief  ten  minutes  he  watched 
the  drill  of  the  various  organizations  to  which  the  city  had  confided  its 
defence, — the  Knights  of  Labor  (for  whom  he  had  always  had  a  special 
abhorrence),  the  Tooth-Brush  Brigade  (so  called  because  strictly  confined 
to  members  of  the  Tooth-Brush  Union),  and  sundry  regiments  of  the 
National  Guard ;  here  he  saw,  too,  the  now  famous  Brigade  of  Dudes, 
and  noticed  the  rapt  admiration  of  the  female  sex  at  their  dapper 
appearance  and  martial  tread.  Besides  these,  he  saw  being  trundled 
out  a  celebrated  piece  of  ordnance  that  had  figured  in  the  War  of  1812. 
It  had  been  lent  for  the  occasion  by  the  State  Armory  on  Thirty-Fifth 
Street,  and  so  formidable  was  its  appearance  that  he  was  obliged  to 
confess  that  if  the  invaders  landed  they  would  have  a  hard  time  of  it. 
Indeed,  all  that  he  saw  revived  his  confidence  to  such  an  extent  that 
a  strong  temptation  came  over  him  to  allow  the  crew  the  indulgence 
of  the  dainty  dish  mentioned  by  the  interpreter ;  but  the  doubt  as  to 
whether,  in  that  case,  a  considerable  sum  of  money  loaned  to  his  bosom 
friend  Mr.  Puncherry  would  be  paid  up  by  his  heirs,  induced  him  to 
put  behind  him  this  cowardly  impulse.  These  reflections  still  occupying 
his  mind,  he  found  himself  opposite  the  Barge  office.  Alongside  of 
this,  as  every  one  knows,  is  a  basin  built  in  the  masonry  of  the  espla- 
nade, for  the  accommodation  of  small  boats.     Around  the  edges  of  the 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  53 

basin  a  great  crowd  were  gathered,  and  so  engrossed  were  they  all  that 
he  had  to  inij^aire  several  times  before  he  learned  that  a  certain  shirt- 
maker,  on  whom  the  city  had  lately  been  relying  to  relieve  her  of  her 
enemies,  had  just  returned  from  an  unsuccessful  expedition  against  the 
fleet.  Elbowing  his  way  through  the  people,  he  at  last  stood  on  the 
very  brink  of  the  basin,  and  there,  to  his  surprise,  saw  the  same  dark 
monster  that  had  so  nearly  proved  disastrous  to  tiie  steam-launch  in 
the  morning.  It  was  lying  torpid  now  on  the  surface  of  the  water, 
and  more  resembled  an  enormous  fish  than  ever.  Its  steering-apparatus 
was  made  in  the  shape  of  a  tail,  and,  instead  of  having  any  clearly- 
defined  deck,  its  body  was  rounded  like  a  cylinder,  black  and  shiny  all 
over. 

As  if  to  carry  out  the  suggestion  of  a  fish,  it  had  two  large  glass 
port-holes  set  in  its  head  like  eyes. 

A  sort  of  hatchway,  some  three  feet  square,  was  open  in  its  back, 
showing  an  interior  of  sufficient  size  to  accommodate  two  men  com- 
fortably. Just  below  this  hatchway,  but  on  the  outside  of  the  boat, 
were  a  couple  of  hooks,  to  hang  torpedoes  on,  or  any  such  tools  as  the 
operator  might  require  when  the  hatchway  was  open.  From  the  nose 
of  the  uncouth  creature  projected  a  wooden  spar  broken  off  short. 

Mr.  McFlusterer  shuddered  as  he  looked  about  in  vain  for  the 
captain  of  this  queer  craft.  He  gathered,  however,  from  a  young  man 
engaged  in  polishing  the  engines,  facts  going  to  prove  that  what  Mr. 
Puncherry  a  few  days  before  had  taken  for  an  attack  by  a  sword-fish 
was  in  reality  an  ineffectual  thrust  of  the  torpedo-spar  of  this  boat ; 
and,  further,  that  the  explosion  on  the  morning  of  the  present  day  had 
been  due  to  her  striking  her  nose  against  a  rock  instead  of  against  the 
bottom  of  the  steam-launch  as  intended.  The  young  man  was  of  a 
loquacious  turn,  and  ''  guessed,"  as  he  passed  a  quid  of  tobacco  from 
one  cheek  to  the  other,  that  the  annihilation  of  the  fleet  would  now  be 
not  long  delayed.  He  concluded  his  remarks  by  observing  that  the 
"  boss"  had  gone  to  dinner. 

There  was  one  comfort  in  the  last  piece  of  intelligence, — namely, 
that,  under  the  circumstances,  the  "  boss"  might  not  be  back  in  time  to 
repeat  the  same  lively  chase  he  had  given  them  this  morning.  To 
further  guarantee  this,  however,  a  sudden  device  came  into  Mr.  Mc- 
Flusterer's  mind.  "  But  is  it  right,"  he  observed,  anxiously, "  to  attack 
a  vessel  bearing  a  flag  of  truce  ?  Reflect,  young  man  :  it  is  against  all 
the  usages  of  war;  and  besides,  as  I  understand  this  very  launch  is 
the  bearer  of  despatches  looking  to  the  retirement  of  the  enemy,  the 
fate  of  the  whole  city  may  hang  on  your  course." 

"  Go  to  thunder !"  replied  the  young  man,  obdurately ;  "  me  and 
the  boss  is  runnin'  this  business  on  our  own  hook ;  we're  tryin'  to  sell 
this  boat  to  the  government,  too,  and  we  ain't  goin'  to  be  balked  by  a 
bit  of  white  rag." 

Sadly  Mr.  McFlusterer  turned  away,  and,  as  the  hour  fixed  for  his 
departure  to  the  steamer  had  now  arrived,  he  walked  over  to  the  other 
side  of  the  Battery,  near  Castle  Garden,  where  he  had  landed.  Here 
he  found  the  steam-launch  already  waiting,  and  an  immense  crowd 
gazing  in  horror  at  its  strange  crew.     As  he  passed  them  to  go  on  board, 


54  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

many  uncoraplimentary  epithets  were  hurled  at  his  head  by  the  ignorant 
rabble,  who  imagined  him  in  league — poor  man ! — with  the  Cliinese. 
Suffice  it  to  say,  the  return  to  the  flag-ship  was  made  without  further 
incident,  and  Mr.  McFlusterer  congratulated  himself  that  his  appeal 
to  the  youth  in  the  submarine  boat  had  after  all  been  not  made  in  vain. 
To  add  to  his  satisfaction,  his  wife  was  for  once  in  her  life  rejoiced  to  see 
him.  She  had  passed  the  entire  day  in  the  state-room  with  Mr.  Pun- 
cherry  for  her  sole  companion ;  consequently,  even  her  husband  brought 
a  welcome  relief  from  the  long-winded  dissertations  of  that  estimable 
gentleman  on  ship-building  and  the  real  requirements  of  the  American 
navy. 

It  was  not  till  dinner  was  over,  and  the  commissioner  and  Taonsu 
had  retired,  that  occasion  offered  for  Mrs.  McFlusterer  to  hear  her 
husband  descant  upon  all  that  he  had  seen.  She  too  recalled  Mr. 
Puncherry's  apt  allusion  to  a  sword-fish  on  the  occasion  of  the  attacks 
during  breakfast  the  other  day,  and  a  feeling  akin  to  horror  seized  her 
when  she  realized  the  peril  in  which  they  had  all  been  placed  from  that 
shirt-maker's  ingenuity.  Poor  lady  I  she  did  not  know  the  terrible 
experiences'  before  her  yet,  and  in  how  extraordinary  a  manner  her 
fate  was  to  be  influenced  by  that  submarine  boat. 

She  made  her  husband  describe  its  every  detail,  the  hatehway  cut 
in  its  back,  its  eye-like  port-holes ;  and,  her  interest  exciting  that  of 
Mr.  Puucherry,  he  began  himself  to  ask  questions,  pondering  deeply 
over  what  the  hooks  in  the  side  could  be  meant  for.  He  was  to  discover 
what  purpose  these  same  hooks  might  serve  before  long ;  and  his  interest 
about  so  trivial  a  detail  will  be  admitted  later  as  a  most  remarkable 
instance  of  second-sight. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


Taonsu  also  brought  back  news  of  the  great  city ;  and  now,  as  he 
and  Wang-Chi-Poo  watched  it,  and  saw  the  distant  lights  come  out  one 
•after  another,  they  conversed  on  the  strange  scenes  the  interpreter  had 
beheld.  At  last  Wang-Chi-Poo  turned  with  sudden  inspiration  to  his 
Jidus  Achates. 

"  Why  shall  I  not  make  of  this  land  a  vast  feudal  province,  and  with 
the  fair  McFlusterer  share  the  vice-regal  throne  ?*' 

"  Great  Excdlency,  thy  project,  so  far  as  immediate  conquest  is 
concerned,  were  impracticable :  thou  wilt  accomplish  it  better  by  the 
extension  of  the  Burlingame  Treaty.  This  is  probably  the  clause  in 
the  conditions  which  they  are  most  reluctant  to  yield,  as  is  natural  after 
they  have  in  effect  repealed  that  treaty  by  the  anti-Chinese  law.  They 
will  be  forced  to  accede  to  it,  however,  bitter  as  is  the  pill,  for  thou 
boldest  them  now  in  the  hollow  of  thy  hand.  Thus  will  this  country 
become  the  asylum  of  our  sick  and  of  our  weak,  for  into  it  we  will  pour 
our  surplus  population. 

"  By  this  means,  too,  we  will  rid  ourselves  of  the  palsy  and  those 
hideous  diseases  which  we  have  inherited  from  our  greater  antiquity, 
and  at  the  same  time  we  will  inoculate  this  haughty  people  with  evils 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  55 

till  they  fall  an  easy  prey.  I  have  noticed  that  a  young  civilization  is 
largely  free  of  these  diseases.  Their  people  smoke  not  opium,  and  are 
therefore  of  a  ruder  and  more  vigorous  growth  than  we.  Thus  to 
endeavor  to  overthrow  their  empire  at  one  fell  stroke  were  impossible ; 
the  slower  course  is  better  and  surer.  Our  civilization  has  seen  all 
others  die  before  it ;  this  civilization  is  destined,  Great  Excellency,  to 
perish  before  it  too." 

"  Taousu,  thy  words  are  as  the  flying  swallows,  graceful,  but  not 
straight- winged." 

"  Then,  Great  Excellency,  to  be  more  explicit,  let  me  say  that  the 
extension  of  the  Burlingame  Treaty  goes  further  than  the  mere  repeal 
of  the  anti-Chinese  law,  and  is  of  greater  moment  than  the  enforced 
payment  of  an  enormous  ransom.  These  people  are  peculiar,  lost  to 
every  consideration  but  the  making  of  chop-dollars.  If  we  demand 
too  much,  and  deprive  them  of  the  hope  of  regaining  by  their  energies 
what  they  pay,  they  will  in  all  probability  sail  to  China  and  retaliate. 
But  if  we  try  to  squeeze  out  of  them  a  moiety  of  their  wealth,  they 
will  pay  it,  and  only  think  to  make  chop-dollars  afresh.  All  other  re- 
ligions have  died  out  here  save  the  making  of  these  chop-dollars,  and 
this  religion  they  cling  to  with  an  enthusiasm  approaching  frenzy." 

"  Thy  advice  holds  wisdom  as  the  bucket  of  a  well  holds  water,  O 
Taonsu,  but  thy  bucket  is  not  always  full,  and  sometimes  its  contents 
are  muddy.  Tell  me  rather  what  thou  wouldst  advise  me  to  do  with 
these  foreign  devils  whom  we  have  captured.  It  goes  against  my  grain 
to  hang  them,  lest  they  become  stiff-necked  and  lost  in  pride  at  the 
honor." 

"  Excellency,  I  have  it.  The  one  that  is  a  great  feudatory  of  the 
highways  (for  I  have  learned  this  much  from  their  secret  converse), 
him  I  would  retain  as  an  intermediary  between  ourselves  and  the 
city ;  whereas  the  other,  who  is  a  great  naval  architect,  him  I  would 
let  go,  in  order  that  he  may  make  more  ships  for  our  enemies." 

"  Ah  !  Taonsu,  now  the  water  in  thy  bucket  is  clear  and  sparkling 
and  veritably  is  supplied  from  the  well  of  truth.  The  first  I  will  con- 
tinue to  send  to  town  till  the  extension  of  the  Burlingame  Treaty,  as 
thou  callest  it,  is  signed,  and  a  moderate  ransom  is  paid  up  in  full ; 
then  shall  he  be  made  into  mincemeat  for  the  crew.  The  other  I  will 
gladly  liberate,  for  such  a  one  is  the  best  ally  we  can  have.  Taonsu, 
thinkest  thou  the  fair  McFlusterer  admires  me  ?"  And  Wang-Chi-Poo, 
struck  an  attitude  of  rapt  attention.   , 

"  Great  Excellency,  she  is  immersed  over  head  and  ears  in  her 
admiration  of  thee." 

"  Taonsu,  thinkest  thou  that  the  fair  McFlusterer  loves  me  ?" 

And  Wang-Chi-Poo  now  struck  an  attitude  of  strained  coquetry. 

"  Great  Excellency,  her  affection  clouds  her  reason." 

"  Taonsu,  I  believe  thee :  of  a  truth,  my  very  walk  is  irresistible." 

And  Wang-Chi-Poo  placed  his  fan  at  a  right  angle  with  his  face, 
and  strutted  off  with  that  peculiar  mincing  gait  and  stilted  gesture 
which  a  ballet-dancer  assumes  when  she  leaves  the  stage  after  an 
immense  ovation. 


56  A  DREAM  OF  CONqUEST. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  terms  of  these  conditions,  which  we  have  as  yet  only  vaguely 
hinted  at,  called  for  the  payment  of  fifty  million  dollars,  in  satisfaction 
of  the  well-nigh  forgotten  indignity  offered  to  the  Chinese  Legation. 
Further  than  this,  a  sum  measured  at  the  rate  of  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  dollars  per  inhabitant  of  every  city  on  the  coast  was  de- 
manded, payable  in  bimonthly  instalments  of  a  hundred  millions  each. 

Thirdly,  and  what  was  far  more  disastrous  to  the  welfare  of  our 
people  than  the  mere  repeal  of  the  anti- Chinese  law,  was  the  extension 
of  the  Burlingame  Treaty,  so  that  practically  the  hordes  of  over- 
populated  China  could  find  entrance  into  the  United  States.  This  last 
proposal  was  telegraphed  on  to  Washington,  and  was  placed  before  the 
extra  session  of  Congress ;  it  was  this  that  caused  the  delay.  In  the 
mean  while,  the  "  surplus"  offered  a  ready  means  of  meeting  the  first  in- 
stalment ;  but,  strange  to  say,  with  all  the  trouble  the  disposal  of  this 
same  surplus  had  given  every  one,  when  it  came  to  parting  with  it  the 
nation  drew  a  long  face. 

These  conditions  bore  with  especial  harshness  on  New  York  ;  and 
having  received  news,  the  day  before,  that  the  squadron  which  we  left 
at  Hampton  Roads  had  escaped  the  storm  (because  no  storm  had  really 
occurred),  the  city  was  bracing  up  for  one  grand  and  last  heroic  effort  at 
co-operation  with  it. 

The  plan  was  to  fill  with  explosives  every  steamer,  ferry-boat,  and 
tug  that  yet  remained  to  the  city,  and  to  send  them  down  upon  the 
enemy  in  such  overwhelming  numbers  that  a  few  might  be  expected  to 
escape  his  destructive  fire.  At  the  moment  of  collision  the  explosives 
were  to  be  ignited  by  concussion,  an  electric  button  being  fixed  in  the 
bows  of  each  vessel.  As  the  previous  attempt  to  capture  the  fleet  by 
assault  had  proved  so  disastrous,  there  were  merely  to  be  sufficient  men 
on  board  to  steer  the  vessels  and  to  manage  the  engines  and  furnaces. 
These  were  to  take  to  small  boats  an  instant  before  the  collision,  and  to 
trust  to  the  expected  confusion  among  the  enemy  to  make  their  escape. 
It  was  a  desperate  undertaking ;  but  the  New  York  pilots  are  the  most 
skilful  and  venturesome  of  their  species,  and  a  sufficient  number 
were  found  for  the  purpose.  But  when  it  came  to  filling  these  vessels 
with  explosives,  the  supply  of  powder  and  dynamite  gave  out,  and  it 
became  necessary  to  make  up  for  the  deficiency  with  petroleum.  Indeed, 
this  far  predominated  over  the  explosives  proper,  and  was  stored  in 
huge  tanks  on  the  vessels'  upper  decks. 

So  secretly  had  everything  been  managed  that,  although  the  prep- 
arations were  under  way  when  Mr.  McFlusterer  visited  the  city,  he 
never  so  much  as  suspected  that  any  further  attempt  was  to  be  niade, 
while  the  Chinese  were  equally  off  their  guard  because  of  the  pending 
negotiations. 

I  am  not  prepared  to  discuss  the  morality  of  the  attack.  A  hostile 
fleet  anchored  off  your  city  ready  to  open  fire  on  you  at  any  moment 
does  not  tend  to  make  you  over-scrupulous  about  the  niceties  of  inter- 
national usage. 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  57 

Besides,  civilized  nations  have  not  always  displayed  an  equal  regard 
for  these  niceties  in  their  dealing  with  semi-barbarous  people  as  with 
each  other.  Be  this  as  it  may,  Wang-Chi-Poo  was  awakened  the  next 
morning  by  the  now  more  attentive  lookouts,  and,  on  gaining  the  deck, 
saw,  to  his  dismay,  the  lately-deserted  waters  of  the  Narrows  covered 
with  shipping.  As  far  as  the  eye  could  reach  ahead,  the  waves  were  alive 
with  vessels ;  boats  of  every  description  there  were,  all  bearing  down 
upon  the  fleet, — swift  and  graceful  steamers  like  yachts,  blunt  and 
short  steamers  like  tugs,  ferry-boats,  and  even  sail-boats.  The  wings 
of  a  few  of  these  contained  painted  advertisements  showing  the  pur- 
poses the  crafts  had  originally  served.  Here  was  "  Tarrant's  Seltzer 
Aperient'*  coming  down  to  kill.  Here  was  "  Hots  Pepper  Bitters"  on 
the  same  errand.  Here  were  "  the  world-renowned  Chokum  Pills," 
while  the  sails  of  still  another  craft  held  aloft  the  timely  suggestion  of 
a  Dr.  Walker  to  use  a  certain  remedy  against  ague  and  to  "  Shake  No 
More."  Indeed,  it  would  seem  that  America  in  her  emergency  had  re- 
solved to  fight  the  enemy  with  her  quack  medicines,  sagely  recognizing 
their  superiority  in  deadliness  to  dynamite  or  guns. 

Such  an  array  of  vessels  had  probably  never  been  seen  before,  and 
all  of  them  that  had  steam-whistles  were  blowing  them,  as  at  the  finish 
of  the  International  yacht-race.  Naturally  astonished  by  all  this  in 
front  of  them,  the  attention  of  the  lookouts  was  distracted  from  the 
rear,  and  they  failed  to  sight  the  sluggish  approach  of  the  American 
squadron  which  we  left  at  Hampton  Roads. 

Now,  the  Chinese,  imagining  the  purpose  of  the  enemy  ahead  to  be 
similar  to  that  of  the  other  night,  directed  their  fire  at  the  water-line 
of  the  fire-ships ;  consequently,  as  the  explosives  which  they  carried 
were  stored  on  the  open  decks  above,  these  vessels  were  generally  sunk 
instead  of  being  blown  up,  thus  concealing  the  dangerous  nature  of  their 
cargoes.  Indeed,  it  was  not  till  the  one  that' was  leading  the  way  had 
arrived  within  three-quarters  of  a  mile,  that  a  shell  striking  a  little 
higher  revealed,  by  the  explosion  that  followed,  the  actual  peril  of  the 
fleet.  I  say  actual  peril,  for,  although  many  of  the  fire-ships  were 
already  sunk,  and  more  sinking  at  every  moment,  they  were  yet  so 
numerous  that  a  fresh  one  was  ready  to  fill  up  each  gap.  And  so  little 
were  their  ranks  thinned  that  it  was  already  manifest  that  they  could 
not  all  be  destroyed. 

The  fleet  was  in  a  disagreeable  predicament.  It  could  easily  have 
repelled  an  army  of  boarders,  for,  having  sufficient  time  to  prepare, 
each  vessel  could  draw  her  crew  within  herself,  close  up  all  but  a  third 
of  her  deck,  and  then  with  her  Gatling  and  Hotchkiss  guns  sweep  off" 
any  number  of  assailants  that  might  have  gained  a  foothold  on  the 
limited  space  remaining. 

To  repel  a  flotilla  of  fire-ships,  however,  coming  with  an  impetus 
that  promised  to  crash  through  any  steel  crinoline  as  through  a  spider- 
web,  was  a  very  different  matter. 

The  vessel  that  was  now  ahead,  too,  had  her  steam-whistle  adjusted 
to  music,  and,  to  add  astonishment  to  confusion,  was  loudly  whistling 
"  Yankee  Doodle."  So  surprised  were  the  Chinese  that  they  ceased 
their  fire  for  a  brief  space,  and  it  was  during  this  interval  that  they 


58  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

first  became  aware  of  the  presence  of  the  American  squadron  in  their 
rear.  Its  coming,  however,  reassured  the  Mongolians.  The  vessels 
looked  so  decrepit  and  innocuous  that  they  actually  cast  a  halo  of  peace- 
fulness  over  the  scene.  They  had  required  all  the  time  since  we  left 
them  to  get  up  from  Hampton  Roads,  and  their  exertions  even  to  ac- 
complish this  feat  had  aged  them  conspicuously.  To  prevent  any  one 
ship  from  sinking  without  the  rest,  chains  had  been  passed  under  the 
hulls  of  all,  and  the  whole  squadron  came  on  in  one  wide  outstretched 
file,  the  Porpoise  and  the  Pacific  on  the  flanks,  as  before,  now  towing 
the  vessels  and  tugging  at  them,  and  anon  shoving  back  this  one  or 
that  one  as  it  seemed  likely  to  fall  out  of  line.  The  Chinese  were  in  a 
trap,  their  enemies  closing  in  upon  them  from  in  front  and  from  behind, 
for  if  that  mass  of  chained-up  rottenness  struck  them  it  might  very 
likely  involve  them  in  common  disaster.  Little  time,  too,  was  given 
for  deliberation ;  the  advance  guard  of  the  fire-ships  was  already  almost 
on  top  of  them,  and  the  inspiring  strains  of  "  Yankee  Doodle"  sounded 
now  like  the  screech  of  doom.  There  was  really  but  one  course  open 
to  the  Chinese  fleet:  it  must  sail  down  on  the  chain-bound  squad- 
ron and  dispose  of  that  first.  To  accomplish  this,  the  Chinese  fleet 
was  obliged  to  come  about,  since  it  faced  the  city.  Now,  it  requires 
a  considerable  amount  of  sea-room  and  no  little  time  to  turn  ves- 
sels of  such  draught.  The  majority  of  them,  however,  accomplished 
the  operation  successfully ;  but  the  one  that  lay  directly  north  of  the 
flag-ship  and  the  nearest  of  any  to  the  fire-ships  was  a  little  slow. 
Just  as  she  came  around,  and  before  her  propeller  had  got  adjusted 
to  her  new  course,  the  Yankee  Doodle,  on  the  lead  of  the  fire-ships, 
putting  on  a  spurt,  struck  her  with  a  terrific  crash.  They  say  that  the 
report  that  followed  the  collision  was  heard  for  twelve  miles  inland,  and 
that  the  iron  plates  of  the  steamer  were  flung  clean  to  the  beach.  At 
all  events,  so  perfect  was  the  construction  of  the  musical  apparatus  that 
it  held  together  compactly,  and,  flying  on  ahead  past  the  fleet,  it  never 
stopped  whistling  till  it  sank  beneath  the  waves.  But  it  was  not  the 
destruction  of  the  two  vessels  that  was  the  most  terrifying  j  it  was  not 
the  noise  and  the  smoke,  nor  even  the  extraordinary  performance  of 
her  musical  attachment,  but  rather  the  burning  oil  that  escaped  from 
the  fire-ship  at  the  explosion  and  spread  itself  over  the  water. 

Now,  Wang-Chi-Poo  had  been  summoned  from  the  breakfast-table 
of  the  captives  at  the  first  alarm.  When  he  got  up  on  deck,  and 
imagined  that  a  hand-to-hand  conflict  was  imminent,  he  had  returned 
to  his  cabin  for  a  particular  cutlass  set  with  rubies  and  brilliants.  This 
weapon,  belonging  to  an  ancestor  of  his,  was  held  by  him  in  especial 
esteem,  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  seeing  him  don  it,  knew  that  the  occa- 
sion was  one  of  extra  moment.  She  could  hear  the  rapid  firing  of  the 
fleets,  and,  having  no  relish  for  being  confined  in  the  cabin  during  an- 
other engagement,  she  seized  the  occasion  of  the  commissioner  carelessly 
leaving  the  door  opened  behind  him  to  follow  him  out.  Being  a  privi- 
leged character,  no  one  interfered  with  her,  although  when  the  other 
two  prisoners  endeavored  to  keep  her  company  they  were  ignominiously 
cuff*ed  back.  Indeed,  after  the  punishment  of  the  servant,  Mrs.  Mc- 
Flusterer, as  might  seem  natural,  was  universally  avoided  by  the  crew, 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  59 

and,  the  only  other  person  having  authority  to  address  her  being  the 
interpreter,  she  had  but  to  escape  his  eye  and  that  of  Wang-Chi-Poo. 
Nevertheless,  she  proceeded  stealthily,  taking  advantage  of  every  chance 
cover  to  conceal  herself,  and  curbing  the  wild  yearning  for  liberty  that 
came  over  her.  She  arrived  on  deck  about  ten  seconds  after  the  ex- 
plosion, and  the  sight  that  met  her  gaze  was  calculated  to  make  the 
stoutest  heart  quail.  The  sea  for  miles  about  was  on  fire,  and  the  fleet 
in  full  retreat ;  every  instant,  too,  the  area  of  the  fire  was  increasing ; 
for  as  the  flames  reached  one  after  another  of  the  fire-ships,  and  licking 
their  sides  caused  them  to  explode,  more  burning  oil  was  poured  on  the 
water,  and  fresh  fuel  was  added  to  the  flames.  Both  tide  and  wind, 
too,  assisted  its  spread  in  the  direction  of  the  fleet,  and  so  intense  became 
the  heat  that  she  could  scarcely  breathe.  At  one  moment  she  thought 
they  might  escape,  but  the  next  instant  the  fire  would  take  a  leap  and, 
springing  from  crest  to  crest,  would  run  on  after  them,  as  if  actually 
hungering  for  them.  Mechanically  she  watched  the  outward  edge  of 
the  huge  burning  area  growing  larger  and  nearer,  hissing  after  them  as 
if  actually  alive ;  she  felt  too  the  heat  each  moment  growing  more  and 
more  intense ;  then  a  pufl*  of  wind  bore  the  fire  down  upon  them,  and 
they  were  in  a  flaming  sea.  The  effect  on  Wang-Chi-Poo  was  most 
extraordinary.  In  his  despair  of  being  able  to  save  his  ships,  his  terror 
suddenly  changed  to  insatiate  animosity,  and  it  was  directed  against  the 
squadron  he  was  rapidly  bearing  down  upon.  The  flight  became  a 
charge.  To  involve  the  enemy's  line  of  battle  in  the  common  destruc- 
tion seemed  now  his  only  aim,  and,  as  his  fleet  sped  on,  he  waved  his 
cutlass  in  the  air  and  shouted  like  a  maniac. 

I  can  imagine  no  more  terrible  spectacle  than  the  onslaught  of  the 
Chinese,  enveloped  in  flames  as  they  were,  w^ith  the  flag-ship  leading 
and  gaining  fresh  speed  from  their  very  momentum ;  the  crews,  too, 
taking  the  cue  from  their  leader,  all  waving  their  cutlasses  in  the  air, 
shouting  their  barbaric  war-cries  and  beating  their  gongs,  perfectly 
beside  themselves.     Like  a  blast  from  the  mouth  of  Hell  they  went. 

I  maintain  that  none  but  Americans  could  have  withstood  such  an 
onslaught.  Chained  up  as  they  were,  however,  they  were  unable  to 
avoid  it.  Nevertheless,  as  if  in  contempt  of  the  danger,  the  admiral 
orders  out  such  poor  old  dinted  and  battered  musical  instruments  as 
the  government  had  left  him,  and  the  glorious  strains  of  the  "  Star- 
Spangled  Banner"  float  upward  like  the  greeting  of  the  gladiators  to 
the  cruel  Emperor, — "  We  salute  thee,  though  about  to  die.''  The  air  is 
caught  up  along  the  shores, — the  shores  which  are  lined  and  crowded 
with  excited  people  till  there  is  scarce  standing-room  on  the  roof  of 
any  house  or  at  any  point  of  vantage, — and  they  re-echo  back  the  strains 
from  ten  thousand  throats".  On  sweep  the  barbarians,  on,  on,  on,  the 
fire  and  the  smoke  sweeping  on  with  them,  at  times  completely  to 
envelop  the  fleet ;  not  much  longer  can  the  shock  be  delayed,  and  men 
and  women  along  the  beach  stand  clasping  each  other  in  their  arms 
with  horror  during  that  terrible  suspense.  Nearer,  now  nearer,  and 
then  Mrs.  McFlusterer — to  whom  we  must  return — felt  herself  thrown 
to  the  deck ;  she  felt  the  vessel  rising  up  under  her  as  a  charger  in 
leaping,  and  next  a  scraping  and  gliding  as  over  crunching  timber. 


60  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

When  she  raised  her  eyes  she  caught  a  glimpse  through  the  smoke  of 
the  admiral,  standing  up  on  the  sinking  stern  of  his  ship,  with  the  flag 
of  his  country  wrapped  about  him.  Wang-Chi-Poo  is  like  a  veritable 
god  aroused.  He  gives  the  signal  to  come  about  and  charge  again. 
Three  times  he  charged  the  sinking  fleet  -with  the  burning  fleet ;  then 
the  sea  closed  over  the  American  navy,  leaving  only  three  vessels  to 
represent  it, — viz.,  the  Nipsic,  the  Vandalia,  and  the  Trenton,  which 
on  the  way  up  had  drifted  apart  from  the  rest,  and  were  only  then 
preserved  to  perish  lamentably,  and  but  too  soon  after,  at  Samoa. 


CHAPTER  XX. 


But  what  means  this  ?  has  the  oil  burnt  itself  out  ?  .Yes,  to  a 
certain  extent,  and  the  disturbed  water  has  scattered  it  into  little  islands 
of  fire.  The  steel  plates  of  the  flag-ship  are  like  the  sides  of  an  oven, 
but  the  ships  ^re  not  themselves  on  fire.  Then,  too,  when  the  Chinese 
came  to  look  about  them,  they  found  that  the  steel  crinolines  had  acted 
as  Davy  lamps  against  the  flames,  keeping  back  the  volume  of  oil  out- 
side their  line  of  contact  with  the  water, — that  is,  about  twenty  to  thirty 
feet  from  the  ship^s  sides. 

You  ask,  perhaps,  how  the  vessel  had  managed  to  charge,  with  these 
nets  on.  Well,  in  certain  experiments  made  by  the  British  off  the  Irish 
coast,  and  more  recently  confirmed  by  the  French  in  their  own  waters, 
it  was  found  that  vessels  thus  attired  could  steam  nearly  eight  miles  an 
hour. 

In  the  present  case,  however,  the  nets  were  seriously  damaged  by 
the  collision  with  the  American  squadron,  and  on  this  injury  to  them 
the  fate  of  two  of  our  prisoners  at  least  is  destined  in  a  very  short  time 
to  hang.  Nevertheless,  the  heat  had  charred  the  wood- work  of  the 
cabins,  and  it  was  not  till  the  walls  of  the  magazines  had  been  deluged 
with  water  that  the  Chinese  felt  relieved  of  all  danger  from  being  blown 
up. 

,  As  might  be  expected,  the  oil  had  proved  fatal  to  the  fire-ships, 
and  now,  as  the  fleet  quietly  steamed  back  to  its  original  position, 
charged  and  smouldering  hulls  were  seen  in  every  direction  littering 
the  water. 

You  ask,  perhaps,  why  Wang-Chi-Poo  did  not  immediately  begin 
to  fire  now  upon  the  city.  The  fleet  returned  to  its  original  position 
for  that  purpose,  but  still  he  hesitated  to  give  the  necessary  orders.  In- 
deed, the  fact  is  so  extraordinary  that,  had  I  not  previously  mentioned 
a  somewhat  similar  cause  of  hesitation  connected  with  Coney  Island,  I 
should  hardly  dare  to  mention  it  now. 

The  fact  of  the  matter  was,  that  on  her  second  return  the  flag-ship 
anchored  a  trifle  nearer  to  the  city,  and  from  this  her  new  position 
Wang-Chi-Poo  suddenly  caught  sight  of  the  colossal  statue  of  Liberty 
on  Bedloe's  Island. 

Mr.  McFlusterer,  along  with  Taonsu,  was  again  despatched  on  the 
following  morning  to  the  city  in  the  steam-launch,  to  demand  an 
increased  sum  as  indemnity  for  the  injury  done  by  the  fire-ships  to  the 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  Ql 

fleet.  During  his  absence,  Mr.  Puncherry  and  the  fair  McFlusterer 
were  taking  an  outing  on  the  deck,  the  gentleman  still  talking  about 
ships  and  armaments,  and  the  lady  listening  to  him  in  the  resigned 
manner  that  was  to  be  expected  of  a  lady  who  had  gone  through  so 
many  other  trials. 

Mr.  Puncherry  was  even  a  little  spiteful  this  morning :  the  iron  ring 
round  his  ankle  pinched  him,  and  his  attendant  at  the  other  end  of  the 
chain,  who  followed  him  up  and  down  like  his  shadow,  refused  to  allow 
him  any  relief.  Being  unable  to  vent  his  spite  on  him,  he  vented  it  on 
his  own  country. 

"  It's  derned  hard,  derned  hard,"  he  said,  "  after  all  IVe  done  for 
the  American  public,  that  there's  not  a  spontaneous  rising  to  demand 
my  ransom.  To  be  sure,  1  haven't  built  such  ships  as  these  people 
have,  but  for  all  practical  purposes  mine  are  better.  No,  marm,"  he 
continued,  "  I  don't  take  much  stock  in  these  new-fangled  navies : 
why,  the  very  armor  they  carry  weighs  them  down  so  that  they  can't 
answer  the  helm.  This  heavy  plating  is  all  a  mistake,  but  the  public 
want  it ;  so  I  just  put  tin  on  my  ships,  paint  it  over,  and  the  public's 
satisfied.'^ 

"  But  would  a  real  iron-plated  ship  have  leaked  like  yours  did  the 
day  we  encountered  that  dreadful  storm  off  Cape  Hatteras?  You 
remember,  Mr.  Puncherry,  you  were  dreadfully  alarmed  yourself,  and 
since  that  day  have  invariably  worn  a  Boy  ton  waistcoat ;  indeed,  if  I 
remember  correctly,  you  confessed  in  a  fit  of  candor  that,  being 
called  the  Terror,  she  was  the  best-named  vessel  that  ever  left  your 
yards.'' 

"  I  won't  deny,  marm,  that  she  leaked  somewhat ;  but  then,  you 
know,  when  wood  is  new  and  before  it  gets  well  seasoned,  seams  will 
gape.  Indeed,  the  seams  in  a  ship  are  like  the  pores  in  a  human :  to  be 
kept  healthy,  they  ought  to  open  every  now  and  then." 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  looked  dubious. 

"  S'posin'  she  wasn't  water-tight,"  he  continued,  "  tightness  ain't 
everything.  She  was  built  from  stem  to  stern  in  an  American  ship- 
yard. What's  the  use  of  a  navy,  marm,  if  it  ain't  to  encourage 
American  ship-building?  I'm  an  American  ship-builder  myself, 
marm,  and  I  don't  believe  in  going  to  Europe  even  for  my  ideas ;  it's 
unpatriotic." 

Mrs.  McFlusterer,  with  a  sigh  of  relief,  for  which  she  nevertheless 
felt  guilty,  saw  Wang-Chi-Poo  advancing  towards  her.  He  still  wore 
his  magnificent  jewelled  cutlass  at  his  side,  and  the  dragon  worked  in 
gold  thread  upon  his  breast  looked  especially  brilliant.  The  graceful 
way  in  which  he  walked,  not  to  speak  of  the  almost  coquettish  manner 
in  which  he  carried  his  fan,  could  scarcely  escape  the  notice  of  so 
susceptible  a  lady.  He  evidently  had  something  very  particular  to  say 
to  her,  which  in  the  absence  of  the  interpreter  he  was  unable  to  explain. 
At  last,  taking  her  by  the  hand,  he  led  her  to  a  seat  in  front  of  a  small 
stage  which  had  been  improvised  without  her  knowledge  just  under  the 
poop.  Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  long  given  up  being  astonished  at  any- 
thing, and,  taking  the  chair,  began  to  watch  the  crew  assembling  as  an 
audience.     At  last  the  curtain  went  up  on  what  was  really  the  billionth 


g2  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

act  of  a  Chinese  drama,  which,  beginning  with  the  early  dawn  of  that 
people's  history,  would  go  on,  an  act  for  each  victory,  to  the  end  of 
their  existence.  The  present  act  was  intended  to  commemorate  the 
victory  of  yesterday,  which  Wang-Chi-Poo  rightly  considered  as  de- 
cisive. Mrs.  McFlusterer  naturally  failed  to  appreciate  the  point  of  the 
performance.  But  the  strained,  unnatural  voices  of  the  players,  pitched 
in  a  high  falsetto,  their  weird  and  peculiar  movements,  and  their 
grotesque  attires,  filled  her  with  an  alarm  quite  appropriate  to  the 
situation.  It  was  all  so  unnatural,  so  unhuman,  so  uncanny  !  Their 
facial  expression  under  no  circumstances  ever  underwent  a  change,  but 
was  fixed  and  immutable  as  that  of  a  Chinese  doll.  This  was  the 
more  curious,  contrasting  so  oddly  as  it  did  with  the  spasmodic  move- 
ments of  their  bodies.  It  was  like  the  performance  of  beings  of  some 
different  sphere,  of  another  world,  only  half  human ;  and  so  unpleasant 
was  it  all  that  even  Mr.  Puncherry  was  affected,  and,  to  the  evident 
displeasure  of  his  attendant,  who  was  deeply  interested  in  the  play,  he 
walked  over  to  the  side  of  the  ship,  dragging  perforce  his  unhappy 
attachment  after  him.  With  the  fascination  of  a  horrible  dream,  Mrs. 
McFlusterer  felt  herself  gazing  at  the  chief  actor :  he  was  tall  and 
well  made,  and,  though  human  in  shape,  he  put  her  more  in  mind  of  a 
huge  bird.  From  the  back  of  his  head  rose  a  couple  of  feathers  from 
a  peacock's  tail.  What  he  was  intended  to  represent  she  failed  to  im- 
agine, but  every  now  and  then  he  would  emit  a  peculiar  screech  like  the 
scream  of  a  peacock,  and,  with  his  eyes  fixed  on  space,  would  walk 
stiffly  three  times  around  the  stage.  This  accomplished,  he  would  clash 
together  a  pair  of  brass  cymbals  fastened  to  the  palms  of  his  hands. 
Then  the  players,  who  filled  the  r6le  also  of  musicians,  would  go  up  in 
a  body  to  a  brass  gong  hanging  on  a  side-scene  and,  as  a  transported 
orchestra,  hammer  on  it  collectively. 

Altogether,  the  performance  was  the  weirdest,  most  uncanny 
spectacle  she  had  ever  witnessed ;  and,  taking  everything  into  con- 
sideration,— the  circumstances  that  attended  it,  the  locality  where  it 
occurred,  here  barely  eight  miles  from  New  York,  now  beleaguered  by 
this  foreign  fleet, — she  could  scarcely  realize  that  she  was  not  the 
victim  of  some  hideous  nightmare,  that  would  have  some  more  terrible 
ending. 

She  was  still  gazing  on  this  peacock-like  individual  as  he  was 
circling  the  stage  for  the  fourteenth  time,  when  a  fresh  troop  of  actors 
appeared  on  the  scene  from  behind.  Thereupon  began  a  procession  of 
all  the  actors  around  the  stage.  Round  and  round  in  dumb  silence  they 
went,  all  with  the  same  fixed  expression  of  utter  vacuity.  Then,  with- 
out a  moment's  warning,  without  rhyme  or  reason,  but  with  a  sudden 
clash  of  gongs,  the  procession  jumped  from  the  stage  in  a  body,  and 
seemed  advancing  on  her.  Mrs.  McFlusterer's  nerves  were  at  that  exact 
degree  of  tension  that  they  could  stand  nothing  more. 

It  was  merely  the  wind-up  of  the  performance,  and  what  in  China 
is  considered  an  artistic  finish ;  but,  not  knowing  this,  she  rushed  over 
to  Mr.  Puncherry.  "Jump,  Mr.  Puncherry !  jump  !"  she  cried,  in  an 
agony  of  fright,  and  she  gave  him  a  sudden  push  in  the  back.  Mr. 
Puncherry  was  standing  near  an  open  port-hole,  sniffing  contemptuously 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  g3 

at  some  new  contrivance  for  closing  it ;  he  was  even  leaning  well  out  of 
the  port-hole  in  his  examinations,  and  the  push  in  the  back  caused  him 
to  lose  his  balance  and  to  topple  overboard,  jerking  the  chain  from  the 
hand  of  his  attendant;  then  in  her  terror,  wild  and  unreasonable  as  it 
was,  terror  at  what  she  herself  could  scarce  explain,  she  jumped  out 
herself,  and  came  down  with  a  great  thump  on  that  gentleman's  back, 
as  his  stout  person  lay  struggling  on  the  waves. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


How  slowly  each  step  in  the  progress  of  mundane  tragedies  often 
seems  to  move,  and  yet  how  little  it  requires  at  the  last  to  bring  about 
the  climax  !  A  Chinese  play,  an  instant  of  alarm,  a  woman's  push,  and 
the  long-retarded  thunderbolt  is  hurled. 

In  this  case  Wang-Chi-Poo  is  the  Jupiter,  and  on  that  fair  city 
that  lay  apparently  so  calmly  dreaming  over  the  distant  surface  of  the 
water,  the  thunderbolt  is  soon  to  fall ;  not  caused  exactly  by  the  escape 
of  the  prisoners,  but  undoubtedly  accelerated  by  that  event. 

Now,  the  etiquette  of  China  prevents,  in  cases  of  sudden  emergency, 
a  mandarin  of  high  rank  from  running.  He  may,  with  perfect  pro- 
priety, hasten  when  there  is  no  need  to  hasten ;  but  when  anything  has 
happened  that  in  lesser  mortals  would  warrant  speed,  he  must  advance 
slowly,  turn  at  every  third  step,  and  bow.  Thus  it  resulted  that  AVang- 
Chi-Poo  took  ten  minutes  to  go  ten  yards,  and  consequently  arrived  at 
the  ship's  side  too  late  to  understand  the  extraordinary  phenomena  he 
beheld, — namely,  a  disturbance  of  the  water  in  the  spot  where  Mrs, 
McFlusterer  had  fallen,  as  if  she  had  been  swallowed  by  a  sea-ser- 
pent ;  and  Mr.  Puncherry,  not  under  the  stern,  where  any  one  would 
naturally  have  looked  for  him,  but,  instead,  fully  half  a  mile  distant, 
and  travelling  over  the  waves  as  if  hooked  to  the  same  creature's  tail. 

Wang-Chi-Poo's  blood  was  up  ;  attributing  the  escape,  however,  to 
supernatural  agencies,  he  yet  hesitated  to  fire  on  Mr.  Puncherry,  but, 
ordering  the  fleet  to  clear  for  action,  he  let  drive  at  the  city.  This, 
too,  in  spite  of  the  statue  of  Liberty,  which  up  to  this  time  had  pro- 
tected it. 

*  ******* 

Though  the  shock  caused  by  her  immersion  failed  to  bring  Mrs. 
McFlusterer  back  to  a  full  realization  of  the  case,  she  yet  reached  out 
her  hand  for  something  to  catch  hold  of,  and  it  came  in  contact  with  a 
long  cylinder-like  object  that  hugged  the  stern  of  the  ship.  There  was 
apparently  a  man  on  the  top  of  it,  or  rather  a  man  inside  of  it,  who,  inter- 
rupted in  whatever  he  was  doing  by  the  double  fall,  looked  at  her  in 
bewildered  astonishment. 

"  Save  me !"  she  cried,  "  oh,  save  me,  good  sir,  and,  if  there's  room, 
Mr.  Puncherry  also !" 

"Two's  company,  but  three's  a  crowd,"  said  the  gentleman,  politely ; 
then,  as  he  assisted  her  to  enter,  "  If  my  boat  were  elastic,  madfim, 
your  friend  would  be  welcome ;  but,  as  it  is,  he  must  take  his  chances 
outside." 


g4  ^  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer,  in  pushing  Mr.  Puncheriy  overboard,  had  seized 
the  end  of  his  chain,  and,  like  all  drowning  persons,  had  kept  tight 
hold  of  it.  Just  as  the  lid  of  the  hatchway  was  closing  on  top  of  her, 
she  instinctively  slipped  this  chain  over  a  hook  on  the  outside  of  the 
boat,  against  which  her  dress  had  caught  as  she  was  being  pulled  in,  and 
then  she  fainted. 

Miraculous  as  it  may  sound,  for  a  man  who  built  such  ships,  Mr. 
Puncherry  was  not  a  good  swimmer.  He,  however,  remembered  a  piece 
of  early  advice, — viz.,  if  ever  in  deep  water,  to  keep  perfectly  quiet  and 
lie  on  his  back.  In  this  position  he  suddenly  remembered,  too,  his 
Boyton  waistcoat,  and,  getting  the  mouth-piece  of  the  connecting  tube 
between  his  lips,  he  began  to  blow  it  up,  keeping  his  eye  the  while  fixed 
on  tlie  boat,  w^hich  he  every  minute  expected  would  come  to  his  assist- 
ance. He  had  inflated  the  lower  portion  of  this  waistcoat,  which  was 
divided  into  sections,  and  which,  contrary  to  what  its  name  would  indi- 
cate, extended  inside  his  trousers  almost  to  his  calves,  when  he  saw  the 
boat  that  he  had  expected  to  pick  him  up,  take  a  downward  plunge 
and  disappear ;  then,  a  sudden  jerk  almost  pulling  his  leg  out  of  its 
socket,  he  was  as  suddenly  slung  around,  and,  to  his  horror,  felt  him- 
self being  hurriedly  towed  away  by  the  foot  over  the  troubled  surface 
of  the  waters,  bobbing  and  plunging  like  a  huge  animated  buoy,  and 
prevented  from  expostulating  by  the  entrance  of  a  breaker  every  time 
he  opened  his  mouth. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  opened  her  eyes  with  the  firm  but  disagreeable 
conviction  that  she  was  in  a  coffin  meant  to  hold  two,  a  coffin  that  was 
plunging  downward,  diving  and  turning,  squirming  and  twisting,  and 
forging  ahead  generally  in  a  mad  career.  So  great  w^as  the  speed  that 
the  water  fairly  hissed  past  them,  and,  as  she  gazed  through  the  heavy 
glass  of  a  couple  of  eye-like  port-holes,  the  water  looked  green  and 
cool.  Numerous  fish  of  uncouth  shape  and  enormous  size  passed  them, 
but  one  huge  dolphin  attached  himself  to  them  as  a  companion  and 
swam  with  them  for  at  least  a  quarter  of  a  mile ;  his  left  eye  came 
directly  opposite  to  the  right-hand  port-hole,  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer 
could  notice  the  astonishment  wjth  which  he  looked  in  at  her.  He 
evidently  wondered  what  kind  of  a  soul  animated  this  new  species  of 
crnifrh-e,  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer  found  herself  wondering  whether  after 
all  she  might  not  herself  be  a  fish.  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  however,  was  a 
practical  woman,  and  these  fancies  were  only  the  after-effects  of  her 
recent  terrible  experiences.  Her  full  consciousness  was  returning,  only 
it  was  returning  slowly,  and  she  had  that  languid  sensation  of  indiffer- 
ence that  comes  as  a  reaction  after  all  great  shocks.  She  began  to  realize, 
too,  that  this  must  be  the  very  submarine  boat  her  husband  had  de- 
scribed to  her,  and  she  found  herself  wondering  how  the  air  was  kept 
so  pure  and  fresh  in  such  a  cramped-up  interior :  indeed,  the  fit  was  so 
tight  that  the  navigator  could  barely  give  the  necessary  attention  to  the 
machinery,  and  during  most  of  the  time  they  lay  together  side  by  side. 
Great  as  was  the  rate  of  speed,  the  action  of  the  engines  was  without 
noise  or  jar,  and  the  whole  mechanism  seemed  to  obey  the  very  word  of 
the  inventor,  as  if  it  were  a  thing  of  life.     Now  he  would  argue  with 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  g5 

it,  now  lie  would  praise  it,  and  anon  he  would  chide  it  as  if  it  were 
veritably  his  offspring. 

^'  I  don^t  know  why  it  is,"  she  heard  him  say,  "  you  ainH  as  spry 
this  afternoon  as  usual." 

"  I  can't  make  it  out,"  he  continued,  more  directly  addressing  his 
companion.  "  She'll  only  range  downward  a  certain  depth,  and  then, 
when  I  try  to  go  deeper,  I'm  suddenly  pulled  back,  as  if  I  were  tied  to 
something  on  the  surface." 

"  It's  Mr.  Puncherry  !  Oh,  it's  Mr.  Puncherry  !"  she  cried,  "  and 
he  must  be  drowned  !  I  hooked  the  end  of  his  chain  on  to  the  boat 
when  I  came  on  board."  Then  Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  to  enter  into  a 
hurried  explanation  of  the  circumstance. 

"  Ah,  true  enough.  I  remember  now  there  were  two  of  you  that 
took  to  the  water."  Then,  more  consolingly,  "  But  there's  no  danger 
of  his  drowning,  madam,  if  he's  the  Mr.  Puncherry.  A  man  would 
never  build  the  ships  he  does,  if  he  could  drown  like  an  ordinary 
mortal :  it's  only  his  ships  that  drown." 

*'  But  he  is  drowned  ?  I  know  he  is  !"  she  continued,  blaming 
herself  for  his  misfortune.  "  Let's  go  up  immediately  to  his  assistance. 
Qui(;ker !  quicker !"  she  urged,  as  the  boat  was  directed  towards  the 
surface.     "  He  must  be  already  dead,  I'm  sure." 

'^  If  you're  so  sure  of  that,  madam,  I  don't  see  the  use  of  hurrying; 
but  the  will  of  the  ladies  always  rules." 

The  boat  now  showed  by  her  increased  speed  that  something  had 
certainly  been  detaining  her ;  they  could  feel  the  water  sweep  by  them 
like  a  mad  torrent;  then  the  port-holes  ahead  showed  greener  and 
paler,  lighter  and  whiter,  and  in  an  instant  afterwards  they  reached 
the  surface,  and  shot  clean  beyond  it  into  the  air,  like  a  fish  that  had 
miscalculated  its  ascending  impetus'.  A  great  thud  fairly  shook  the 
breath  out  of  the  lady  as  the  boat  dropped  back  again  on  the  surface, 
and  they  were  lying  calmly  rocking  to  and  fro. 

*'  Open  the  hatchway,  quick  !  I'm  sure  he's  dead !"  she  cried.  Then 
the  hatchway  was  thrown  open,  and,  raising  their  heads,  they  beheld 
Mr,  Puncherry,  inflated  as  to  his  lower  extremities  to  about  four  times 
his  usual  dimensions,  and  apparently  seated  on  the  top  of  the  waves. 

lie  waved  his  hand  affably  to  them.  "  Wind  her  up  again,"  he 
cried,  "  only  don't  start  off  too  sudden.     I've  got  a  new  idea  for  a  ship." 

^'  Great  Scott !"  he  added,  in  a  different  tone  of  voice,  "  they've 
begun  to  shoot.  I  guess  you'll  have  to  make  room  for  me  on  board, 
after  all." 

It  was  true :  a  large  missile,  followed  by  a  distant  report,  sailed 
past  them. 

^'  If  they^'ve  begun  to  shoot,  I  guess  I'd  better  say  good-day,"  cried 
the  inventor,  drawing  his  head  in  like  a  snapping-turtle ;  then,  the 
trap-door  closing,  with  a  twist  of  a  crank,  a  little  whistle,  and  a  swish 
of  the  tail,  the  extraordinary  craft  again  plunged  downward,  and, 
burying  herself  under  the  waves,  disappeared  from  Mr,  Puncherry's 
sight. 

This  second  instalment  of  submarine  travel  was  in  most  respects  a 
repetition  of  the  first.  Nevertheless,  Mrs.  McFlusterer  felt  more  in- 
5 


(56  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

clined  to  listen  to  the  shirt-maker,  and  to  hear  his  explanations  as  to 
why  he  liad  not  succeeded  in  blowing  up  the  ships.  The  first  failure 
he  attributed  to  the  slow  action  of  the  mechanism  for  exploding  his 
torpedo ;  the  next,  to  the  steel  crinolines,  in  the  meshes  of  which  the 
proboscis  of  his  craft  had  unfortunately  got  entangled,  thereby  pre- 
venting his  approach ;  while  as  for  this  morning,  he  had  merely  come 
out  on  a  reconnoitring  expedition,  and  had  not  known  till  he  got  quite 
close  that  tiie  vessels  had  removed  their  crinolines,  probably  for  the 
purpose  of  repairing  such  damage  as  had  been  sustained  in  the  col- 
lision with  the  American  fleet.  When  Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  fallen 
into  the  waves  so  near  him,  he  was  in  the  act  of  examining  the  hull  of 
the  flag-ship  to  find  a  weak  spot,  "  so  as  to  follow  it  up  under  water." 

Shortly  after  this  explanation,  the  lady  felt  the  nose  of  the  boat 
pounding  along  the  bed  of  the  river,  and  now,  for  they  had  well-nigh 
reached  their  destination,  against  the  sunken  piles  of  the  wharves. 
Just  as  she  was  giving  up  all  hope,  however,  that  they  would  ever 
arrive,  the  craft  took  another  sudden  upward  dart,  and,  springing  out 
of  the  watel"  as  before,  only  with  a  greater  flourish  of  the  tail  and  a 
little  louder  whistle,  lay  rocking  in  the  very  basin  that  her  husband 
had  visited  two  days  earlier.  But  what  had  become  of  the  crowd  that 
usually  received  the  vessel  ?  There  was  no  crowd  here.  A  dire  plague, 
a  hush,  a  cathedral  stillness,  had  fallen  over  the  city,  broken  by  an 
occasional  crash  or  distant  boom.  Could  it  be?  It  must  be !  The 
bombardment  of  the  city  had  begun  ! 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  and  the  shirt-maker  gazed  about  them  w^ith 
feelings  impossible  to  describe.  What  few  people  were  visible  were 
cautiously  peering  around  the  corners  of  houses,  or  were  taking  ad- 
vantage of  a  lull  in  the  firing,  like  children  playing  puss-in-the-corner, 
to  slip  across  from  one  spot  to  another. 

As  his  family  might  need  his  protection,  the  shirt-maker  insisted 
upon  repairing  to  his  home,  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer  was  about  to  accept 
his  offer  to  convey  her  thither,  when  Mr.  Puncherry,  whom  she  had 
entirely  forgotten,  entered  the  basin,  safe  and  sound,  by  the  novel  pro- 
cess of  pulling  himself  hand  over  hand  by  his  chain.  A  belated  hack- 
driver,  who  had  been  caught  behind  a  house  when  the  firing  began, 
and  had  since  been  too  terrified  to  leave  that  retreat,  was  finally  in- 
duced to  convey  them  up-town  to  the  lady's  residence,  and  to  drop  the 
shirt-maker  at  the  nearest  point  to  his  house.  The  three  thereupon 
entered  the  carriage,  and  the  horses  were  put  to  a  full  gallop  toward^ 
Broadway. 

The  aim  of  the  fleet  seemed  principally  directed  at  the  lofty  build- 
ings, and  barely  had  they  passed  Wall  Street,  when  they  saw  Trinity 
Church  steeple  rock  and  fall. 

Opposite  the  Western  Union  building  a  cab  was  lying  across  its 
horse,  while  a  party  of  gentlemen  were  struggling  to  extricate  them- 
selves from  the  interior. 

But  still  the  same  absence  of  crowds.  What  had  become  of  so- 
many  people?  They  could  scarcely  have  all  left  town.  At  City  Hall 
Place,  however,  a  vast  number  had  congregated.  Mrs.  McFlusterer 
turned  away  her  head,  as  a  shell  exploded  in  their  midst  with  terrible 


A   DREAM  OF  CONqUEST.  67 

carnage.  Faster,  faster,  driver !  To  remain  here  were  death,  and  yet 
the  narrow  highway  before  them  scarce  were  safer.  Was  there  no  less 
dangerous  road  than  up  Broadway,  no  wider  avenue? 

Though  this  street  was  mostly  deserted,  yet  a  few  belated  persons 
were  hovering  about  their  stores,  runuhig  back  to  lock  a  door,  or  to 
remove  some  last  forgotten  article.  Down  the  side  streets,  however, 
people  could  be  seen  in  greater .  numbers,  getting  out  their  sick  and 
aged,  while  around  these  hung  women  in  anguish, — over  all  the  sharp, 
whip-like  crack  of  the  shells,  and  the  jar  of  walls  continually  falling. 
Great  God !  It  was  truly  a  terrible  drive,  and,  with  the  unerring  in- 
stinct of  women  in  emergencies,  Mrs.  McFlusterer  jumped  to  the  right 
conclusion, — namely,  that  the  bombardment  had  been  hastened  by  her 
escape.  She  would  go  back,  she  would  do  anything  to  stay  it ;  and, 
becoming  hysterical,  she  implored  her  companions  to  return,  weeping 
and  wringing  her  hands  convulsively,  and  losing  all  that  flippancy  and 
lightness  of  character  which  we  have  tried  to  depict.  Even  had  her 
companions  been  willing  to  accede  to  her  request,  it  were  now  impos- 
sible, for  their  return  was  suddenly  cut  off  by  a  mass  of  people  like  a 
drove  of  cattle  wildly  sweeping  around  the  corner  of  Canal  Street  up 
Broadway,  mangled  and  bleeding,  many  of  them  but  propelled  onward 
by  their  terror.  A  train  on  the  elevated  road,  conveying  up  town  the 
last  lingering  hordes  from  the  lower  parts  of  the  city,  had  either  been 
struck  by  a  shell  or  had  met  with  some  other  accident.  The  carriage 
was  still  ahead,  however,  and  kept  its  distance,  the  throng  growing  be- 
hind till  it  resembled  a  huge  troubled  sea  with  hands  emerging  here 
and  there  from  above  the  surface,  as  of  people  veritably  drowning. 
Opposite  Grand  Street  a  cry,  as  of  ten  thousand  imprecations  rolled 
into  one,  reached  the  carriage,  aixl  its  occupants  on  looking  back  beheld 
a  column  of  smoke  rising  behind  the  crowd  high  into  the  air.  The 
lower  part  of  the  city  was  on  fire.  On,  on,  on  ! — no  use  in  loitering ; 
the  most  heroic  valor  could  accomplish  naught :  walls  falling  on  every 
side,  shells  exploding  everywhere,  a  sea  of  flames  in  pursuit,  distance 
was  the  only  refuge. 

Suddenly  the  explosions  ceased,  a  death-like  stillness  reigned  su- 
preme, and  the  word  went  up  that  the  enemy  were  landing  I  It  was  at 
this  moment,  this  supreme  moment  of  terror,  that  the  distant  sound  of 
fife  and  drum  was  heard ;  louder  and  more  distinct  it  grew,  shriller 
and  cheerier  as  it  approached,  calming  the  confusion  and  allaying  the 
alarm.  Then  the  carriage  was  compelled  to  pull  to  one  side,  and  the 
'^  gallant  Sixty-Ninth"  swept  by,  changing  their  step  from  a  march  to 
a  double-quick,  and  that  into  a  long  sweeping  stride,  as  they  pressed 
on  to  meet  the  foe.  After  them  came  the  finely-equipped  ^^  Seventh,^' 
in  their  trim  uniform  and  with  their  admirable  discipline ;  then,  more 
regiments  of  the  National  Guard.  The  Knights  of  Labor,  ready  this 
time  "to  strike''  to  good  purpose,  followed  the  troops,  and  next  in  turn 
came  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Tooth-Brush  Makers,  bristling  all 
over ;  after  them,  the  Brigade  of  Dudes,  armed  with  umbrellas  spread 
and  nicely  raised  on  high,  not  to  protect  their  heads,  but,  O  tempora,  O 
mores !  their  shiny  black  hats  from  the  dust  of  crumbling  masonry. 
They  numbered  exactly  four  companies,  and  their  dainty  attire  and 


(38  A  DREAM  OF  CON qV EST, 

])articularly  the  dainty  way  they  all  pressed  the  coramon  earth  with 
their  neatly-varnished  boots  together  elicited  hearty  plaudits  from  the 
crowd.  On  they  swept,  bearing  a  flag  on  which  was  proudly  printed, 
in  golden  letters,  "  Behold,  the  Real  Four  Hundred." 

Closing  the  procession  was  the  Revolutionary  piece  of  ordnance 
lent  by  the  State  Armory  on  Thirty-Fifth  Street.  For  what  purpose 
it  was  trundled  out,  save  to  gratify  the  popular  craze  for  antiquity,  is 
hard  to  say.  Possibly  it  was  fired  by  the  general  enthusiasm  of  the 
troops,  as  it  could  be  fired  in  no  other  manner,  and  had  pleaded  to 
accompany  them ;  or,  more  likely,  it  argued  that  it  was  t(X)  old  to  be 
left  behind  unprotected,  and  had  been  brought  along  out  of  commisera- 
tion. Poor  thing !  Men  and  women  dropped  sympathetic  tears  as  it 
feebly  rumbled  on. 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

The  bombardment  ceased  simultaneously  with  the  conflagration, 
which,  as  rt  turned  out,  was  that  of  the  Produce  Excliange.  Fortu- 
nately, the  valiant  efforts  of  the  fire-brigade  succeeded  in  extinguishing 
this,  and,  when  the  regiments  of  the  National  Guard  arrived  at  the 
point  where  the  enemy  were  supposed  to  be  landing,  it  was  to  find  the 
report  erroneous.  No  military  force  in  the  world,  of  the  same  numer- 
ical strength,  would  have  received  the  enemy  more  courageously ;  but, 
when  you  reflect  that  the  government  had  supplied  them  with  Spring- 
field cartridges  for  their  Remington  muskets,  you  can  appreciate  that 
they  might  as  well  have  been  provided  with  clubs.  At  any  other  time 
the  jmrsimony  and  short-sightedness  of  the  government  would  be  almost 
laughable,  but  it  was  no  laughing-matter  now.  On  the  contrary,  all 
maintained  that  it  was  a  case  of  drying  injustice.  Nominally  Uncle 
Sam  allots  four  hundred  thousand  dollars  a  year  among  his  forty-two 
nephews,  but  instead  of  paying  cash  he  very  unkindly  pays  in  kind, — 
in  other  words,  trades  ofl*at  his  own  valuation  any  old  military  rubbish 
that  he  has  no  need  of  himself.  Thus,  during  the  preceding  year  the 
New  York  appropriation  had  been  paid  up  partly  in  old  saddles  and 
partly  in  cartridge-boxes,  the  last  at  the  rate  of  a  dollar  apiece,  and 
which  had  been  in  the  government's  hands  since  the  War  of  1812. 
To  give  an  almost  burlesque  touch  to  the  situation,  a  cavalry  troop  had 
got  the  cartridge-boxes  and  an  infantry  regiment  received  the  saddles. 
The  disbandment  of  State  cavalry  troops  in  New  York  dates  from  this 
gift.  And  yet  all  the  time  Little  Log-Rolling  Creek  is  being  improved 
into  a  river,  merely  that  the  boys  who  live  along  the  banks  may  have 
somewhere  to  swim  without  the  danger  of  getting  drowned. 

Now,  while  the  bombardment  had  really  taken  place  in  a  fit  of 
spleen  at  the  loss  of  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  nevertheless,  had  it  begun  only 
fifteen  minutes  later,  it  would  have  been  in  full  accordance  with  the 
usages  of  the  most  civilized  nations.  Mr.  McFlusterer  had  returned 
in  the  steam-launch  without  bringing  back  with  him  any  distinct  guar- 
antee that  even  yet  the  terms  were  accepted,  and  Wang-Chi-Poo  had 
vowed  to  open  fire  on  the  city  if  such  guarantees  were  not  received 
by  four  o'clock.  Not  only  so,  but  the  assault  on  the  flag  of  truce  by 
the  shirt-maker  would  have  excused  the  attack  at  an  earlier  stage  still. 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  gg 

To  recur  to  Mr.  McFliisterer,  however:  lie  liad  passed  his  wife,  on 
his  return  from  his  second  trip  to  the  city,  without  knowing  it,  and  he 
had,  moreover,  passed  Mr.  Puncherry.  His  astonishment  at  behokliug 
his  old  friend  inflated  to  four  times  his  usual  size,  and  waving  his  hand 
to  him  from  the  top  of  the  waves,  caused  Mr.  McFlusterer  to  forget 
all  about  his  wife,  and,  though  Mr.  Puncherry  had  pointed  downward 
to  her  as  he  called  out  her  name,  he  naturally  failed  to  see  the  connecting 
link  that  there  really  was  between  her  and  that  gentleman's  flight. 

The  very  escape  in  itself  was  so  extraordinary  that  Mr.  McFlusterer 
could  think  of  nothing  else ;  for,  though  he  knew  that  Mr.  Puncherry, 
from  long  experience  Avith  his  own  ships,  protected  himself  against 
sudden  immersions  by  wearing  a  patent  inflating  waistcoat,  he  did  not 
know  that  this  waistcoat  was  in  fact  a  tunic  divided  into  compartments, 
and  that  when  the  proper  compartment  was  inflated  it  made  of  the  seat 
of  Mr.  Puncherry's  nether  garments  a  very  comfortable  air-cushion. 
This  it  was  that  raised  Mr.  Puncherry  so  high  above  the  waves,  and 
gave  him  that  exultant  and  Arion-like  appearance  as  he  rcxle  them. 
So  great  was  the  Razor's  astonishment,  that  he  failed  to  notice  the 
comparatively  trivial  fact  that  the  fleet  had  begun  to  fire  on  the  city, 
and  long  before  he  gained  the  vessel's  side  this  firing  had  developed 
into  a  pretty  brisk  cannonade. 

Now,  the  strangest  part  of  this  bombardment,  to  use  a  Hil>ernicism, 
was  its  sudden  termination.  The  abruptness  with  which  it  began 
was  only  surpassed  by  the  extraordinary  abruptness  with  which  it  ceased. 
Was  the  motive  merely  to  give  the  city  a  taste  of  what  the  Chinese 
could  do?  If  so,  it  amply  served  its  purpose.  Men  won't  suffer  their 
residences,  their  places  of  business,  their  Penates  and  their  Lares,  their 
churches,  and  particularly  their  banks  of  deposit,  to  be  hammered  into 
smithereens  if  they  can  save  them  by  buying  off  the  enemy.  Without 
stopping  to  question  the  reason  for  this  cessation  of  hostilities,  however, 
or  to  ask  themselves  why  it  had  not  been  explained  by  the  fleet,  the 
twelve  principal  gentlemen  of  the  city  (for  afler  the  warning  of  the 
Centennial  Ball  I  don't  wish  to  make  invidious  distinctions  by  men- 
tioning names)  constituted  themselves,  on  the  first  cessation  of  the 
firing,  into  a  select  committee  and  hastily  called  a  meeting  of  all  the 
less  well-known  gentlemen  of  New  York  in  the  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel. 

A  hush  of  expectation  fell  over  the  city,  as  people  waited  to  hear 
what  these  Solons  would  agree  upon. 

At  last  it  was  decided  by  the  less  well-known  portion  of  those 
present  that  the  select  portion  should  be  allowed  to  continue  in  their 
self-assumed  mission,  and  should  prove  their  right  to  the  claim  of 
public  spirit  by  going  over  to  the  fleet  in  a  neighborly,  friendly  way 
and  making  the  best  ternis  they  could  with  the  barbarians.  It  was 
with  extreme  reluctance  that  this  proposal  was  finally  agreed  to  by  the 
twelve,  and  the  account  of  their  expedition,  the  marvellous  incidents 
that  attended  it,  and,  last  but  not  least,  the  discovery  of  the  extraordi- 
nary cause  of  the  city's  immunity  from  a  further  dose  of  shot,  can  best 
be  given  in  the  graphic  words  of  a  newspaper  man  who  volunteered  to 
accompany  the  party. 

"  We  embarked  in  a  ferry-boat  at  the  foot  of  East  Seventh  Street," 


70  A  DREAM  OF  CONqVEST, 

he  said,  "  at  about  six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  though  it  was  quite  dark 
before  we  finally  got  away.  How  well  I  remember  it ! — a  hot,  sultry 
night,  without  a  breath  of  air,  and  a  duplicate  set  of  stars  seemingly 
fixed  beneath  the  water,  so  bright  were  the  reflections.  At  first  each  of 
us  tried  to  keep  up  the  spirits  of  the  others,  as  we  sat  huddled  together 
on  the  deck.  Then  some  one — I  don't  remember  who — began  a  song, 
— not  a  jovial  college  song,  but  a  sad  weird  song,  and  one  suited  gener- 
ally to  the  occasion  ;  after  this,  beciiuse  human  nature  is  human  nature, 
and  reacts  naturally  from  one  extreme  to  the  other,  some  one  told  a 
story,  and  from  that  we  all  fell  to  talking  of  the  extraordinary  mission 
we  were  on,  the  extraordinary  fact  of  a  Chinese  fleet  being  in  our 
waters  at  all,  and  what  blank  fools  these  Chinese  were  not  to  reflect 
on  the  terrible  retribution  that  would  come  upon  them  later.  We  all 
agreed,  however,  that  we  were  in  a  very  awkward  predicament;  being 
pillaged,  so  to  speak,  by  a  burglar  who  in  the  end  would  pay  dearly  for 
his  crime,  but  who  in  the  mean  time  was  making  things  decidedly  un- 
comfortable about  the  house.  Such  was  the  general  verdict,  and  it  was 
impressed  upon  my  memory  because  at  the  moment  of  its  expression 
there  was  a  frightful  explosion,  caused  by  the  paddle-wheel  striking  a 
torpedo.  For  all  decided  that  it  must  have  been  a  torpedo,  and  proba- 
bly one  of  those  set  for  the  Chinese,  which  had  either  got  loose  from  its 
moorings  or  had  been  detached  by  that  fleet  itself.  Nevertheless,  it 
didn't  do  much  harm,  since  it  only  knocked  out  a  couple  of  blades  from 
the  paddle-wheel. 

"  The  curious  feature  about  the  trip  was,  however,  that  the  further 
we  left  the  city  behind  us,  and  consequently  the  nearer  we  approached  the 
enemy,  the  more  intense  became  the  sadness  with  which  we  had  started 
out.  Opposite  Governor's  Island  our  conversation  turned  to  the  subject 
of  a  future  life,  and  we  actually  discussed  it  until  we  entered  the  Nar- 
rows. On  passing  through  them  we  shortly  reached  a  point  from  which 
the  waters  of  the  outer  harbor  began  to  spread  out  quite  wide,  and  at 
last  we  succeeded  in  distinguishing  the  dark  hulls  of  the  enemy's  ships, 
all  grouped  together  in  one  black  mass  ahead  of  us.  I  have  no  lan- 
guage to  portray  our  sadness  at  this  sight.  The  tide  was  running 
swiftly,  and  we  were  dropping  down  on  the  fleet  more  rapidly  tlian  we 
imagined.  Indeed,  we  must  have  got  within  half  a  mile  of  it  before 
any  one  reflected  that  our  intentions  might  be  misunderstood.  The 
prominent  gentlemen  of  New  York  owe  their  prominence  rather  to 
their  status  in  commercial  affairs  than  to  their  experience  of  war, 
and  understand  better  the  cutting  off  of  coupons  than  of  heads :  con- 
sequently, the  possibility  of  our  being  taken  for  the  advance  guard  of 
some  desperate  assaulting  .party  never  struck  any  one.  At  last  some 
one  did  venture  the  suggestion,  and,  in  view  of  its  plausibility,  we 
stopped  and  blew  the  whistle. 

"Not  a  sound  from  the  fleet.  There  they  lay  calmly  at  anchor, 
their  spars  faintly  limned  against  the  starry  sky,  and  their  huge  bodies, 
painted  gray,  rising  now  more  like  huge  octopuses  out  of  the  water. 
Then  we  advanced  anew,  but  w^ith  greater  caution  and  increased  sad- 
ness, and  blew  the  whistle  again.  Were  they  waiting  for  us  to  get 
quite  close  ?  were  they  then  going  to  annihilate  us  at  one  fell  swoop  ? 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  71 

Assuredly,  our  presence  by  this  time  ought  to  be  known.  One  would 
think  that  they  would  challenge  us, — would  blow  a  whistle  in  response 
to  ours,  to  ask  our  intentions,  as  it  were.  But  not  a  sound.  Our  sad- 
ness grew  actually  appalling;  there  was  something  mysterious  about 
this  silence,-  too,  something  uncanny  and  suspicious :  it  fairly  made 
the  flesh  of  our  several  bodies  creep.  I  really  think,  if  each  of  us  had 
not  been  ashamed  to  show  his  feelings  before  the  others,  we  should 
all  have  proposed  turning  around  instanter,  much  as  the  Western 
trapper  did  when  he  found  the  'bar's  track  gettin'  too  plagued  fresh.' 
We  had  now  arrived  within  three  hundred  yards  of  the  largest  vessel, 
and  there  was  the  same  deep  quiet.  Were  these  phantom  ships  ?  Were 
they  creatures  of  our  imagination,  after  all  ?  The  ordinary  tokens  of 
life  that  could  be  looked  for  in  a  fleet  on  such  an  occasion  were  com- 
pletely lacking ;  and  then,  oh,  horror  of  horrors  !  at  the  very  instant 
when  it  might  be  necessary  to  beat  a  retreat,  the  cursed  paddle-wheel 
gave  out,  and  we  drifted  without  steerage- way  directly  upon  them. 

"  Until  now  we  had  no  idea  that  we  were  so  close  to  them,  and  be- 
fore we  could  realize  it  we  felt  our  accursed  tub  grating  and  pounding 
against  the  iron  sides  of  the  largest  vessel.  I,  for  one, — and  I  know 
the  others  joined  me, — threw  myself  flat  down  on  the  deck  to  avoid 
the  discharge  that  must  come  now.  But  not  a  shot,  not  the  cry  of  a 
sentinel,  and  for  sound  only  the  thumping  and  grating  of  our  ferry- 
boat, as  the  tide  pressed  her  down  against  those  iron  walls. 

"  '  They're  deserted,'  at  last  cried  the  captain ;  '  I  know  they're  de- 
serted. Follow  me.'  And,  carrying  the  gang-plank  to  the  top  of  the 
upper  deck  over  the  cabin,  he  rested  one  end  of  it  on  the  bulwarks 
of  the  steamer,  strode  intrepidly  across,  and  we  followed  him  cautiously 
half-way.  Then  I  shall  never  forget — no,  not  till  the  last  hour  of  my 
allotted  time  arrives — the  sight  I  beheld.  The  vessel  was  the  largest 
in  the  squadron,  evidently  the  flag-ship,  and  with  more  deck-room  than 
iron-clads  usually  possess.  Instead  of  these  decks  being  deserted,  how- 
ever, they  were  actually  thronged  with  people,  just  as  if  the  crews  from 
all  the  other  ships  had  congregated  here ;  but  the  strangest  fact  was  that 
of  this  crowd  not  a  soul  was  moving.  Even  where  we  were  we  must 
have  been  distinguishable,  but  not  an  eye  was  raised  to  meet  us,  nor  a 
cutlass  drawn.  There  they  all  stood  as  if  cut  in  stone  or  congealed  in 
various  attitudes  of  rapt  attention.  It  was  as  if  some  huge  momentous 
catastrophe  had  interrupted  them  in  the  midst  of  the  bombardment  and 
had  suddenly  petrified  them.  Here  were  the  appliances  about  the  guns 
for  loading  them,  and  fresh  cartridges  just  as  they  had  been  left  on 
deck.  Among  these  stood  the  crew,  like  stone  images,  dressed  in  silks 
or  the  variegated  attires  of  their  different  ranks,  down  to  the  humblest 
sailor,  all  looking  towards  a  common  centre,  and  with  a  fixity  of  gaze 
that  could  hardly  have  been  surpassed  had  they  been  posing  for  a  photo- 
graph. 

"  It  was  our  captain  who  first  recovered  himself.  *  Who'll  follow 
me?'  he  cried;  but  no  one  did.  What  a  brave  man  we  thought  him  I 
Indeed,  taking  everything  into  consideration,  I  deem  that  captain  the 
most  courageous  man  I  ever  beheld.  As  for  us,  we  stood  on  the  plank 
just  where  we  were,  midway  between  the  ferry-boat  and  the  steamer, 


72  A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

looking  down  on  him.  We  could  see  him  push  through  the  crew,  dis- 
turbing their  long  flowing  robes  as  he  swept  by,  occasionally  upsetting 
the  equilibrium  of  one  after  another  of  the  figures  as  he  jostled  by  them  ; 
but,  though  pushed  to  one  side,  the  figures  would  quickly  fall  back  into 
their  original  positions.  At  last  we  saw  him  make  his  way  through  the 
ring  of  the  inner  circle  and  lean  over  the  common  centre  of  attraction. 
Here  he  stopped;  but  what  was  he  waiting  for?  He  did  not  return. 
Instead  of  explaining,  he  did  not  even  answer,  though  we  all  called 
his  name,  and  we  called  it  again  and  again.  We  could  see  him  leaning 
over  further  and  further.  Good  heavens  !  he  appeared  to  be  assuming 
an  attitude  like  all  the  rest.  Had  the  same  nefarious  spell  begun  to 
operate  on  him  ?  Then,  curiosity  rising  superior  to  fear,  one  of  the  rest 
of  us  followed  the  captain  down  into  the  ship,  with  identically  the  same 
result.  Neither  would  he  return  nor  answer  when  we  called.  Next 
another  of  us  went  to  look  after  the  last,  and  so  on,  one  after  another, 
till  I  remained  alone.  Finally,  curiosity  or  the  same  fatal  spell  also 
beginning  to  take  effect  on  me,  I  went  myself,  drawn  I  know  not  by 
what  invisible  agency.  T  advanced  through  these  figures  ;  as  I  passed 
them  I  saw  that  they  were  not  of  stone  at  all,  but  only  still  and 
motionless  as  if  engaged  in  some  religious  rite  of  extra  solemnity.  As 
I  moved  by  I  touched  them ;  their  muscles  were  firm  and  their  flesh 
felt  warm.  I  even  got  to  where  my  companions  w^ere,  and,  looking 
down,  this  is  what  I  saw:  a  china  basin  serving  as  a  cockpit,  sur- 
rounded by  a  ring  of  lanterns,  and  in  this  basin  a  couple  of  small 
black  beetles  fighting.  Then  it  was  all  explained  to  me.  I  had  read 
in  some  book  of  travels  on  this  extraordinary  people,  that,  if  they 
are  engaged  in  battle,  and  by  any  chance  a  lesser  strife  occurs  in  their 
midst,  it  is  considered  in  the  light  of  an  augury,  and  their  own  combat 
must  be  postponed  till  the  result  of  the  latter  be  determined.  They 
must  stand  perfectly  motionless,  pay  no  attention  to  the  enemy,  and 
must  suffer  themselves  even  to  be  slaughtered  without  resistance. 
Thus,  in  the  Tai-Ping  Rebellion,  at  Wasso,  in  the  upper  provinces 
of  the  empire,  a  party  of  five  hundred  suffered  themselves  to  be 
massacred  to  a  man  by  the  enemy  as  they  stood  entranced  over  a  com- 
bat of — what  do  you  think  ? — a  couple  of  ants.  A  fight  between  two 
beetles,  however,  is  considered  an  especial  augury ;  and  the  beetles  in 
the  present  case  were  ordinary  ship-roaches,  that  had  probably  been 
disturbed  from  their  retreats  in  the  seams  of  the  deck  by  the  violence 
of  the  cannonade. 

"  We  had  evidently  come,  however,  towards  the  close  of  the  duel, 
for  even  as  T  gazed  the  larger  beetle  had  seized  the  smaller  in  his  claws  ; 
giving  it  one  last  shake,  a  faint  struggle  ensued,  and,  a  thrill  passing 
over  each,  they  both  rolled  over  on  their  backs  stone-dead. 

"At  this  instant  a  gong  sounded  with  a  terrible  clash,  the  people 
suddenly  came  back  to  life,  and,  while  a  detachment  surrounded  us 
with  their  drawn  cutlasses,  the  rest  of  the  crew  flew  back  to  their 
guns,  and  the  long-interrupted  bombardment  was  on  the  eve  of  being 
resumed. 

"Great  heavens  I  I  thought,  is  the  fate  of  a  city  of  fifleen 
hundred   thousand   souls   to   hang   on   such  a  circumstance?     How 


A    DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  73 

raany  lives  had   the  pugnacity  of  those  two  little  creatures  thus  far 
saved  ? 

"  This  was  my  principal  reflection,  and  so  engrossing  was  it  that  I 
failed  to  notice  that  a  large  and  not  ill-favored  man  had  in  the  mean 
time  puslied  through  the  drawn  cutlasses  of  our  detainers,  and  was 
bowing  before  us,  and  brushing,  witli  the  folds  of  his  gorgeous  blue 
tunic,  the  seat  of  a  cane-bottomed  chair  w^iich  he  dragged  forward. 
After  this  I  heard  myself  addressed  in  faultless  English  by  a  small, 
narrow-chested  young  man,  who  seemed  to  understand  that  we  were 
envoys  from  the  city.  Even  yet,  however,  I  scarcely  know^  what  would 
have  been  our  fate,  had  it  not  been  for  the  amused  astonishment  of  the 
big  man  in  the  blue  tunic  at  our  hats.  He  would  examine  them,  take 
them  off  our  heads,  and  then  place  them  on  his  own  with  the  utmost 
complacency.  Finally,  when  our  mission  was  fully  explained  to  him, 
we  were  taken  down  below  into  his  cabin,  where  a  sumptuous  repast 
w^as  set  out  for  us.  Nevertheless,  despite  the  hospitality  of  the  recep- 
tion,— a  hospitality  that  is  really  extraordinary  when  you  reflect  on  the 
way  we  had  arrived, — the  terms  we  offered  were  absolutely  refused. 
Wang-Chi-Poo  raised  his  demands  higher  than  those  originally  made, 
and  even  put  in  an  extra  sum  for  the  steamer  destroyed  by  the  fire-sliips. 
His  ultimatum  was  this  :  a  ransom  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars 
per  head,  instead  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars,  for  the  in- 
habitants of  every  seaboard  city,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty  million 
dollars  to  be  paid  by  New  York  before  to-morrow  night ;  that  Wash- 
ington should  agree  to  the  extension  of  tlie  Burlingame  Treaty  without 
further  delay;  and  that  a  certain  lady,  whose  name  he  gave,  should  be 
returned  to  the  fleet.  In  addition  to  this,  that  twelve  of  New  York's 
most  distinguished  citizens,  perhaps  we  the  very  envoys  ourselves, 
should  be  given  up  as  pledges  for  the  fulfilment  of  these  terms. 
Then  we,  the  envoys,  decided  that  it  was  about  time  to  retire,  and,  as  the 
vessel  which  had  brought  us  was  quite  unequal  to  stemming  the  tide, 
we  very  ignominiously  had  to  accept  Wang-Chi-Poo's  offer  to  get  out 
the  steam-launch  for  our  safe  return.  In  so  great  a  hurry,  indeed, 
were  we  to  get  away,  and  so  fearful  lest  the  permission  to  go  might  be 
rescinded,  that  we  failed,  until  the  last  moment,  to  notice  a  melan- 
choly object  in  a  large  bamboo  cage  chained  to  one  of  its  bars  by  his 
foot ;  and,  though  he  appealed  to  us  piteously  in  our  own  language 
and  begged  us  to  take  him  back  with  us  to  the  city,  w^e  pretended  not 
to  see  him.  I  must  confess,  however,  that  our  regret  at  leaving  him 
was  somewhat  mitigated  by  the  fact  that  this  same  gentleman  had  got 
ahead  of  several  of  us  before  in  transactions  in  Wall  Street.'^ 


CHAPTER  XXin. 


.  It  is  still  night,  and  the  lamps  in  a  luxurious  room  are  beginning 
to  burn  low.     Silken  portieres  are  drawn  across  the  doors  of  the  apart- 
ment, and  on  a  sofa,  soft  and  velvety,  reclines  a  woman,  deep  sunken 
in  its  cushions, — a  woman  not  exactly  beautiful,  but  not  altogether  plain. 
A  changed  woman  she  looks, — not  precisely  aged,  but  one  who  has 


74  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

gone  through  some  long  and  terrible  ordeal, — a  woman  who  has  at  last 
''  collapsed."  She  is  breathing  heavily ;  she  has  reached  the  ultimate 
term  of  endurance. 

The  windows  of  the  apartment  are  open,  to  catch  any  lingering 
breath  of  air ;  for,  though  the  trees  in  the  Park  opposite  have  not  as 
yet  put  on  their  summer  livery,  the  night  is  oppressively  hot, — intensely 
hot,  one  of  those  hot  nights  which  are  occasionally  thrown  into  the 
fickle,  womanly-like  month  of  April,  as  a  faint  indication  of  the 
summer  soon  to  burst,  like  the  blast  from  a  furnace,  over  the  land.  A 
strange  hush,  too,  has  fallen  over  the  city,  broken  occasionally  by  the 
cidl  of  a  sentinel,  or  the  plaintive  cry  of  a  child  from  the  thronged 
humanity  bivouacking  in  the  Park.  AH  is  otherwise  still, — strangely 
still, — and  the  woman  on  the  sofa  is  strangely  still,  too.  At  last  she 
turns  weariedly,  and,  pressing  her  hand  to  her  brow,  thinks, — tries  to 
think  calmly,  with  the  half-distinct  foreboding  that  evil  is  yet  to  come ; 
and  indeed  tlie  very  silence  that  prevails  on  every  side  is  the  hush  rather 
of  anticipation  than  of  relief. 

As  regards  the  manner  of  Mrs.  McFlusterer's  safe  return  to  her 
home,  suffice  it  to  say  that  after  the  lull  in  the  bombardment  she  had 
been  conducted  thither  by  Mr.  Puncherry,  who,  after  leaving  her,  re- 
turned to  his  own  house. 

Far  removed  as  her  residence  was  from  the  centre  of  the  city,  it 
had  not  entirely  escaped  injury,  as  the  occasional  cracks  in  the  mirrors 
or  windows  would  go  to  prove.  One  of  the  chimneys,  too,  had  come 
down  with  a  crash,  and  all  the  servants  had  decamped,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  old  housekeeper,  whom  alone  Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  found 
to  receive  her.  Though  it  was  now  nearly  two  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
the  domestics  had  not  yet  returned. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer,  when  we  left  her,  had  just  put  her  hand  up  to 
her  brow.  She  was  tossing  restlessly  on  the  sofa,  and  she  returned  to 
consciousness  from  the  semi-conscious  state  with  the  uncomfortable 
feeling  that  there  was  some  one  either  in  the  room  with  her  or  near  the 
room, — some  one  who  did  not  belong  there,  and  had  no  part  or  parcel 
with  the  surroundings ;  some  one  who  had  entered  surreptitiously,  who 
had  perhaps  crept  through  one  of  the  windows,  and  whose  coming  now 
made  her  very  flesh  creep.  She  arose  with  a  sudden  start :  she  called  ; 
no  answer  ;  then  she  looked  about  her.  The  room  was  half  darkened, 
and  the  dim  light  there  was  gave  no  indication  of  any  presence. 

She  looked  at  the  portieres  :  one  of  them  was  stirring.  She  screamed 
violently.  A  man  with  a  long  white  beard,  narrow-chested  and  small, 
suddenly  came  out  from  behind  it. 

"  Daughter  of  the  West,  it  is  I."  And,  removing  his  beard  with  a 
sudden  jerk,  Taonsu  stood  before  her  in  European  attire.  "  Ah,"  he 
exclaimed,  *^  thou  thoughtst,  fair  lady,  to  escape  us.  See,  by  this  card, 
which  thou  didst  leave  on  the  cabin-table,  I  have  tracked  thee,  and  I 
hav«  come  to  take  thee  back." 

"  Never  will  I  return  !"  exclaimed  the  lady,  with  a  shudder. 

"Then  thy  husband  dies  by  the  most  excruciating  tortures,  and 
the  bombardment  is  rasumed.  Thus  has  Wang-Chi-Poo,  my  master, 
spoken." 


A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST,  75 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  wrung  her  hands :  until  now  she  had  forgotten 
all  about  her  husband.     He  added  fresh  difficulty  to  the  dilemma. 

What  should  she  do  ?  She  could  not  allow  him  to  be  slain.  Oh, 
was  ever  a  woman  placed  in  so  terrible  a  predicament? 

"  Thou  hast  but  a  short  time  to  decide^  O  daughter.^' 

Then  she  turned  upon  him  suddenly :  *^  Why  dost  thou  pursue  me 
thus?  why  dost  thou  so  zealously  do  thy  master's  bidding?" 

His  answer  came :  "  Because  I  love  thee,  fair  one." 

*'Thou  lovest  me?  But  why  then  dost  thou  come  in  another's 
behalf?     Why  not  in  thine  own  ?" 

"  Because,  fair  lady,  according  to  the  ways  of  China,  those  we  love 
we  never  seek  to  wed  ourselves,  but  rather  try  to  marry  them  to  our 
friends." 

This  extraordinary  announcement  struck  Mrs.  McFlusterer  with 
such  astonishment  that  she  could  only  gasp  ;  there  was  a  tinge  of  irony, 
too,  pervading  the  assertion,  but  whether  this  was  intentional  or  not  she 
was  unable  to  decide,  nor  did  the  face  of  the  speaker  give  any  indica- 
tion to  assist  her. 

"  Make  up  thy  mind,  fair  lady,"  he  resumed,  "  whether  thy  hus- 
band is  to  suffer,  and  thy  city  to  be  destroyed.  I  have  just  brought  back 
the  envoys  from  the  fleet,  and  thy  return  was  one  of  the  stipulated 
conditions." 

"  Give  me  until  to-morrow,— only  till  to-morrow,"  she  cried,  falling 
on  her  knees. 

"  That  is  already  granted,  fair  one,  but  by  that  time  must  thy  de- 
'cision  be  made." 

Thereupon  Taonsu  retired,  put  on  his  white  beard,  and,  as  he 
walked  down  to  the  East  River  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  docks,  he 
would  have  readily  passed  for  an  ordinary  pedestrian,,  so  perfect  was 
the  disguise  of  his  beard  and  his  European  clothes. 

Now,  the  harbor  had  been  comparatively  deserted  lately,  for,  though 
large  numbers  of  torpedoes  had  been  destroyed  by  the  burning  oil,  there 
were  yet  sufficient  loose  ones  floating  about  to  make  the  waters  far  from 
agreeable  as  a  resort :  consequently,  no  one  interfered  with  Taonsu  as 
he  rowed  out  in  a  small  boat  he  had  kft  in  the  deep  shadow  of  a  wharf. 
It  was  some  twenty  minutes  later  that  .he  gained  the  steam-launch, 
unnoticed  as  when  he  had  left  it. 


CHAPTER   XXIV. 


Poor  Mrs.  McFlusterer  was  having  a  hard  time  of  it.  It  is  the 
last  straw  that  breaks  the  camel's  back,  and  any  resolution  she  might 
Jiave  had  not  to  give  herself  up  as  a  willing  sacrific"e  was  to  be  broken 
yet. 

Up  to  this  time  she  could  scarcely  have  imagined  this  proposal  of 
Taonsu's  to  be  serious,  and  the  morning  sunlight  was  beginning  to 
dispel  the  shadows  of  the  past  night. 

The  state  of  aifairs  could  not  be  so  terrible,  after  all.  The  city 
authorities  would  never  permit  such  a  sacrifice,  and  they  must  be  ap- 


76  A  DREAM  OF  COXqUEST. 

pealed  to  in  order  to  relieve  her.  Tlie  liberation  of  her  husband  must 
be  insei-ted  as  a  special  condition  in  any  pending  treaty.  She  would  go 
down  immediately  to  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  to  the  City  Ilall. 
Her  spirits  were  reviving,  and  she  toyed  with  her  egg-shell  and  her 
spoon  with  more  of  her  old  manner.  As  she  glanced  out  of  the  window, 
too,  she  could  see  the  children  of  the  bivouackers  playing  opposite  to  her, 
and  tlie  very  leaves  seemed  to  have  sprouted  through  the  night ;  all, 
everything  on  every  side  of  her,  seorned  lighted  with  ho]ie,  and  tlie 
})eople,  by  their  joyful  expression  of  countenance,  appeared  to  feel  that 
the  siege  was  soon  to  be  raised.  Yes,  she  must  go  down  to  the  City 
Hall  at  once ;  and  she  rose  from  her  seat  with  the  intention  of  getting 
her  cloak  and  bonnet. 

But  what  is  this  ?  A  body  of  troops  passing  by  ?  Yes.  No,  for 
they  do  not  pass.  On  the  contrary,  the  tramp  of  their  footsteps  ceases 
just  opposite  her  house ;  how  odd  ! 

After  a  moment's  delay,  steps  are  heard  on  the  stoop,  and  the  bell 
rings  loudly. 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  had  stood  just  where  she  had  risen,  with  her 
hand  pressed  to  the  folds  of  her  dress  as  she  swept  them  back  from 
the  breakfast-table.  Under  ordinary  circumstances  her  curiosity  would 
have  carried  her  to  the  window,  but  there  was  something  in  the  very 
echo  of  these  footsteps,  something  in  the  very  ring  of  the  bell,  that 
riveted  her  to  the  floor. 

She  hears  the  old  housekeeper  descending  the  stairs  on  her  way  to 
the  front  door ;  she  hears  a  smothered  discussion  in  the.  hall ;  and  the 
next  instant  a  conclave  of  twelve  gentlemen,  headed  by  Mr.  Puncherry, 
solemnly  enter  the  apartment. 

They  were  all  eminently  respectable 'gentlemen,  and  most  of  them 
she  had  previously  met  in  society ;  but  there  was  an  expression  of  deep 
sadness  on  their  faces  that  completely  altered  them. 

At  first  they  said  nothing  to  her,  but  stood  regarding  her  pityingly 
through  their  glasses.  Mrs.  McFlusterer  could  support  their  silence  no 
longer. 

"  What  is  it,  gentlemen  ?  tell  me  what  it  is,"  she  cried.  "  I  know 
you  come  with  something  terrible  to  announce.  Has  my  husband  been 
sacrificed  ?" 

Instead  of  replying,  they  all  nudged  one  another,  as  if  each  wanted 
to  force  the  other  into  the  duty  of  spokesman.  Mr.  Puncherry,  being 
nudged  the  hardest,  was  almost  physically  forced  to  a  prominence  of 
position  from  which  he  was  unable  to  retreat. 

"  If  s  very  awkward,  it's  very  awkward  indeed,  madam,"  said  that 
gentleman,  with  his  face  very  red,  and  rubbing  his  hat  the  wrong  way 
with  the  cuff  of  his  sleeve. 

"The  fact  of  the  matter  is,"  he  continued,  in  a  fit  of  sudden  in- 
spiration to  escape  the  disagreeable  task  of  explaining  matters  himself, 
"  these  gentlemen  stopped  at  my  house  and  asked  me  to  bring  them 
over  and  introduce  them."  Then,  calling  out  each  gentleman's  name 
in  turn,  Mr.  Puncherry  bowed  himself  cleverly  out  of  the  situation 
into  which  he  had  been  so  cruelly  thrust. 

"The  fact  of  the  matter  is  rather,  madam,"  said  the  gentleman 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  77 

whose  name  had  been  the  fii-st  called,  "  that  we  were  yesterday  deputed 
as  a  committee  of  twelve  to  take  in  hand  the  difficult  task  of  getting 
rid  of  the  enemy.  For  that  purpose  we  heroically  visited  the  fleet  last 
evening,  and  were  almost  blown  up  on  the  way."  The  old  gentleman 
stopped  somewhat  abruptly,  for  Mrs.  McFlusterer  stood  looking  at  him 
60  fixedly  that  her  gaze  made  him  uncomfortable.  He  took  out  his 
handkerciiief  and  sponged  the  top  of  his  bald  bead,  then,  as  if  thereby 
receiving  stimulation,  he  went  into  a  lono^-winded  account  of  their  ex- 
pedition, stating  the  terms  Wang-Chi-Poo  had  finally  consented  to 
accept,  and  last,  but  not  least,  describing  the  ])itiable  appeal  of  Mr. 
McFlusterer  as  he  sat  in  his  bamboo  cage  tied  by  the  foot.  "  This 
ultimatum,"  continued  the  old  gentleman,  "  we  presented  to  the  city 
authorities,  and  they  have  just  sent  us  to  ask  of  you  a  very  great  favor, 
— or,  let  me  say,  to  state  to  you  what  a  heroic  sacrifice  they  would  con- 
sider it  if,  in  the  interest  of  your  native  city  and  the  country  at  large, 
you  would  consent  to  sail  back  with  the  fleet  to  China.  It  wouldn't 
be  so  disagreeable  if  you  only  look  at  it  in  the  proper  spirit ;  and  before 
very  long  Mr.  Puncherry's  ship-yards  will  have  turned  out  an  Ameri- 
can squadron  which  will  sail  over  and  bring  you  back.  It  is  very 
awkward,  but  you  see  if  you  dun't  return  by  to-night  they  resume  the 
bombardment,  and  your  husband  will  be  immediately  sacrificed."  Then 
the  speaker  stopped  and  looked  at  her  inquiringly.  "  Madam,  we 
await  your  answer." 

Mrs.  McFlusterer  stood  there  like  Lot's  wife  turned  into  a  pillar  of 
salt ;  she  was  quite  as  rigid  and  quite  as  blanched.  So  her  city  threw 
her  off!  and,  flinging  herself  on  the  sofa,  she  burst  into  a  wild  par- 
oxysm of  weeping.  And  yet  as  she  wept  the  great  sacrifice  she  was 
asked  to  make  appealed  to  her  by  its  very  magnitude  :  was  ever  a 
woman  asked  to  make  such  a  sacrifice  as  this  ?  By  one  of  those  ex- 
traordinary instances  of  clairvoyance,  too,  her  husband  was  revealed  to 
her  just  as  he  was  in  his  bamboo  cage.  He  seemed  to  be  imploring  her, 
as  he  piteously  told  her  of  tlie  fate  that  hung  for  him  on  her  decision. 
Above  all,  the  terrors  of  the  bombardment  recurred  to  her,  and  again 
she  saw  the  frightened  women,  the  dying  children,  and  the  crashing 
walls. 

"  Gentlemen,"  she  said,  abruptly  rising  and  facing  the  deputation, 
"  the  men  of  America  having  failed  to  provide  for  the  defence  of  tlieir 
women,  it  remains  for  a  woman  to  make  the  sacrifice.  I  go, — yes,  I 
will  go."     Then  the  deputation  withdrew  and  left  her  to  herself. 

The  news  of  Mrs.  McFlusterer's  decision  spread  like  wildfire. 

It  became  the  sensation  of  a  much-excited  town ;  crowds  of  those 
that  yet  remained  of  the  city's  population  came  to  gaze  at  her  windows, 
and  she  found  that  the  publicity  she  had  always  courted  was  gained ; 
not  that  she  cared  for  it  now,— on  the  contrary  :  but  the  principal  con- 
dition of  success  seems  to  be  that  when  we  gain  what  we  have  been 
struggling  for  all  our  lives,  we  gain  it  in  such  a  manner,  at  such  a 
time,  or  hampered  with  such  conditions,  as  to  make  it  valueless. 

Even  in  the  strained  situation  of  affairs,  committees  were  formed  to 
wait  on  her,  and  bands  of  music  came  and  played  funeral  dirges,  appro- 


78  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

priate  to  the  occasion,  as  they  paraded  up  and  down  in  front  of  her 
house.  Yet  there  was  a  large  faction  of  the  opinion  that  she  ought  not 
to  be  allowed  to  go  under  any  circumstances.  These,  however,  were 
mostly  the  impotent  ones  who  possessed  neither  banks  of  deposit  nor 
bank-accounts. 

Now,  in  spite  of  his  previous  protestations  to  the  contrary,  Wang- 
Chi-Poo,  on  learning  of  Mrs.  McFlusterer's  decision,  had  finally  agreed 
to  receive  a  lump  sum  down  in  lieu  of  the  various  instalments  he  had 
originally  demanded  :  this  had  already  been  sent  out  to  the  Chinese. 
Then,  too,  commissioners  appointed  by  telegraph  from  Washington  had 
just  signed  a  treaty  for  the  free  admission  of  the  Mongolian  race  ;  con- 
sequently, there  now  remained  only  the  exchange  of  Mr.  McFlusterer 
for  his  wife,  which  was  to  take  place  midway  between  the  fleet  and  the 
shore  at  six  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

How  that  day  dragged  for  Mrs.  McFlusterer  !  When  once  we 
have  decided  on  some  heroic  act,  it  is  the  small  and  trivial  details  that 
irritate. 

It  was  five  o'clock  when  the  deputation  called  for  her,  and  this  had 
been  joined  by  a  band  of  the  fairest  w^omen  New  York  yet  con- 
tained. They  were  dressed  in  white  tunics  of  the  coarsest  stuff,  and 
walked  before  her  carriage  slowly,  wringing  their  hands  and  tearing 
their  hair.  Now,  New  York,  when  it  sets  itself  to  do  anything,  does 
it  remarkably  well ;  and  in  response  to  the  popular  craze  for  proces- 
sions the  children  of  the  various  hospitals  and  charitable  associations 
with  which  the  lady  had  been  connected  were  provided,  at  the  city's 
expense,  with  clean  pocket-handkerchiefs,  and  were  marshalled  in  line. 
After  the  school-children  came  the  various  city  guilds;  and,  as  there 
had  been  no  time  to  get  the  legislators  from  Albany,  the  Board  of 
Aldermen  closed  the  procession. 

So  great  was  the  concourse  of  people  whom  her  martyrdom  drew 
forth  that,  on  arriving  at  the  wharf  where  she  was  to  embark,  it  was 
with  difficulty  she  could  pass  through  their  ranks ;  nor  even  here 
would  the  band  of  fair  women  leave  her,  but,  accompanying  her  on  the 
ferry-boat  which  had  been  engaged  to  take  her  out,  they  sailed  down 
the  bay  with  her,  making  the  sad  waves  sadder  by  their  wailing  and 
their  gestures  of  woe.  Punctually  to  the  hour,  the  steam-launch 
brought  Mr.  McFlusterer  out  from  the  fleet  to  the  common  point  of 
meeting,  and  for  a  brief  ten  minutes  husband  and  wife  remained  clasped 
in  each  other's  arms.  Then,  just  as  she  was  getting  into  the  steam- 
launch  to  take  his  vacated  place,  he  weakened,  and,  jumping  back  after 
her,  vowed  that  he'd  remain  by  her  side  tlirough  thick  and  thin  and 
go  with  her  to  China  or  to  the  devil  himself.  Thus  the  deputation  of 
twelve  respectable  gentlemen  and  the  band  of  disconsolate  fair  ones  re- 
turned to  the  city  without  the  ^'  Razor  ;"  and  the  several  forts  along 
the  Narrows,  which  had  been  so  useless  for  war,  appeared  to  fire  minute- 
guns  as  they  passed,  and  there  was  a  weird  sadness  over  all  things. 

Then  these  discharges  grew  more  frequent;  even  the  foreign  fleet 
seemed  to  be  taking  part  in  the  demonstration. 

By  the  time  the  deputation  had  got  back  to  the  city,  however,  shells 
were  bursting  over  their  heads,  and  walls  were  tumbling  again.     Was 


A   DREAM  OF  CONQUEST.  ■  79 

AYang-Chi-Poo  enraged  at  the  "  Razor's"  return  ?  It  would  seem  so, 
for  the  bombardment  had  been  renewed,  and  was  increasing  in  severity. 
Indeed,  the  former  attack  paled  into  insignificance  before  the  new. 
Deeming  that  trouble  was  over,  the  people  had  moved  back  into  their 
houses,  and  were  therefore  taken  completely  by  surprise.  Such  a  scene 
of  horror  was  probably  never  witnessed  before.  Here  were  women  in 
their  frantic  terror  throwing  their  own  children  out  of  windows,  and 
men  and  boys  stretching  their  arms  on  high  in  mute  appeal  to  the  Deity. 

One  of  the  shells  exploding  in  Gilmore's  Garden,  temporarily  oc- 
cupied by  Barnum^s  Circus,  caused  in  some  miraculous  manner  the 
beasts  to  escape,  and  these  suddenly  stampeding  made  confusion  worse 
confounded,  as  they  tore  down  the  streets,  trampling  all  before  them  ; 
huge  elephants  trumpeting  their  alarm,  uprooting  lamp-posts  with  their 
trunks,  and  lasliing  their  tails ;  hippopotami  with  their  tusks  tearing 
and  rending  everything  they  met ;  affrighted  giraffes  craning  their  long 
necks  upward  and  thrusting  their  heads  into  second-story  windows, 
as  they  daslied  by.  Such  a  terrible  sight  I  never  saw.  After  this  all 
grew  confused.  I  have  an  indistinct  recollection  0/  going  down  the  bay 
with  the  deputation  that  conducted  Mrs.  McFlusterer,  and  on  my  return 
of  lending  my  assistance  in  the  capture  of  these  escaped  animals ;  after 
that  of  throwing  myself,  completely  exhausted,  upon  my  bed,  regardless 
of  wliat  might  ensue,  and  of  trying  to  sleep  through  the  bombardment. 
At  first  I  seemed  to  succeed  fairly  well,  but  was  disturbed  at  last  by 
the  gradually  increasing  noise  of  heavy  ordnance,  of  the  crash  of  falling 
masonry  growing  louder  and  nearer,  and  particularly  by  a  great  light 
shining  in  my  eyes.  The  main  pipe  of  the  Standard  Oil  Company, 
crossing  the  East  River,  had  been  burst  open  by  the  frantic  inhabitants, 
and  the  oil  ignited  as  it  flowed  over  the  waters  of  the  harbor.  By  this 
flaming  light  I  seemed  to  see  for  an  instant  Wang-Chi-Poo  standing, 
not  on  the  deck  of  his  ship,  but  on  the  lofty  Brooklyn  Bridge,  survey- 
ing, like  Macaulay's  New  Zealander,  the  desolation  about  him. 

Then  the  glare  grows  more  intense  and  the  booming  of  the  cannonade 
nearer  and  more  terribly  distinct.  Adjacent  walls  are  falling, — ay,  the 
very  walls  of  my  own  house. 

I  spring  from  my  bed,  and  stare  about  me  in  bewildered  astonish- 
ment. Instead  of  its  being  night,  the  glorious  rays  of  an  April  sun 
are  shining  in  my  eyes ;  the  walls  of  my  room  are  standing,  but  the 
reports  of  heavy  ordnance  still  continue.  I  fly  to  my  window, — but 
what  is  this  ?  No  panic-stricken  people,  no  troops  of  enraged  elephants 
and  bizarre  giraffes,  no  deputations  of  fantastically-draped  females 
wringing  their  hands  and  tearing  their  hair.  On  the  contrary,  the 
same  prosaic  people  are  passing  up  and  down  on  their  every-day  affairs 
as  are  wont  to  pass  every  morning  of  the  year. 

Can  it  all  have  been  a  dream?  No,  for  the  cannonading,  instead 
of  growing  fainter,  rather  gets  louder.  I  fly  to  the  door,  and  my  land- 
lady hands  me  a  note. 

"  Have  they  gone  ?"  I  ask. 

"Bless  your  soul,  sir,  of  course  they've  gone.  Here  Fve  been 
knocking  for  the  last  fifteen  minutes.  You  couldn^t  expect  them  to 
wait  the  answer  that  long." 


80  A  DREAM  OF  CONQUEST. 

"  I  mean  the  Chinese." 

"The  Chinese,  sir?  Laws-a-massy !  what's  got  inter  you,  sir?" 
And  the  old  lady  started  back  alarmed.  Indeed,  I  might  well  have 
terrified  any  one,  especially  so  staid  and  eminently  respectable  a  party 
as  Mrs.  Archer  was,  as  I  pounced  out  upon  her. 

She  had  dropped  the  note  in  her  fright,  and  I  could  hear  her  steps 
pattering  down  the  stairs  as  she  hastily  descended. 

As  I  picked  up  the  letter  I  recognized  the  handwriting,  and  particu- 
larly the  coat  of  arms,  as  Mrs.  McFlusterer\s.  Doubtless  she  had  sent 
it  from  the  fleet,  I  thought,  as  a  last  farewell.  I  opened  it  hurriedly, 
and  this  is  what  I  read  : 

"  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McFlusterer  request  the  pleasure,"  etc.,  etc. 

Then  all  was  clear.  I  had  simply  been  dreaming,  and  I  could 
account  for  every  incident  in  my  nightmare,  however  distorted.  A 
term  in  Congress ;  a  trip  at  the  close  of  the  last  sassion  to  the  "  Queen 
of  the  Antilles,"  where  I  was  strongly  impressed  with  the  evils  of 
Chinese  immigration,  and  the  inevitable  ruin  to  a  newer  civilization 
when  inoculated  wit^  the  moral  and  physical  diseases  of  the  East; 
the  meeting  while  on  that  beautiful  isle  with  a  courtly  and  not 
uninteresting  specimen  of  the  Chinese  race,  who  was  travelling  with 
his  secretary ;  and,  lastly,  on  my  return  the  accounts  that  met  me 
of  the  Samoan  trouble, — these  several  incidents,  coupled  with  an 
extensive  reading  of  what  has  been  published  concerning  our  defence- 
less coasts,  and  a  voyage  under  water  with  my  friend  Mr.  Smith,  who 
is  actually  my  shirt-maker,  in  the  trial  trip  of  his  boat,  supplied 
warp  and  woof  of  this  hideous  dream-tissue,  everything  as  distinct 
and  clear  as  I  have  tried  to  make  it ;  the  details  as  to  marine  warfare, 
steel  plates,  explosives,  etc.,  when  I  came  to  compare  them  with  fact, 
being  in  perfect  accordance  therewith,  and  my  own  personality,  as  so 
frequently  occurs  in  dreams,  now  gliding  into  one  of  my  characters, 
and  now  into  another.  Nevertheless,  dream  that  it  was,  there  is  a 
vein  of  common  sense  running  through  it  like  a  silver  thread,  and  it  is 
this : 

If  we  wish  to  preserve  in  peace  the  wealth  and  prosperity  our  energies 
have  produced,  we  ought  to  devote  some  small  portion  to  defending 
ourselves  against  those  attacks  which  our  very  wealth  and  well-being 
invite. 

So  much  at  least  common  sense  dictates :  guarding  against  reckless 
expenditures  whose  results  may  become  useless  in  the  next  ten  years, 
let  us  at  least  spend  sufficient  to  keep  our  proper  place  in  the  march  of 
improvement;  for  so  only  can  .the  just  demands  of  a  great  power  be 
enforced  when  it  becomes  necessary  to  enforce  them. 
Si  vis  pacem,  para  helium. 


THE  END. 


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WORCESTER'S  UNABRIDGED  DIGTIONARY. 

new  Gfl^t^on.  7be  Standard.  2130  pa|{««. 

The  Largest  and  Most  Comp/ete  D/ct/onar/  in  the  Engtish  Language. 

THE  LATEST. 

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Tbe  R««»  edition  of  tbia  DlotltonariT 
inoludes } 

A  DICTION  A IIY  that  contains  thousanda 
of  words  not  to  be  found  in  any  other  Un- 
abridged Dictionary. 

A  PRONOUNCING  GAZKTTEEE  OF 
TH£  WORLD,  baaed  upon  Lippincott'a  Gazet- 
teer, the  Standard  on  Geographical  Names, 
noting  and  locating  over  20,000  nlaces. 

A  PRONOUNCING  blCTIONARY  OF 
BIOGR  «\.PHY,  based  upon  Lippincott's  Bio- 
graphical Dictionary,  by  Dr.  Thomas,  the  Stand- 
ard on  Biographical  Names,  giving  not  only  th« 
names,  but  many  facts  concerning  over  12,000 
personages. 

A  DICTIONARY  OF  SYNONYlttES,  con- 
taining  over  5000  words  in  general  use. 

AI.I.  BOUND  IN  ONE  BOOK,  and  Illus- 
trated with  Wood-cuts  and  Full-page  Plates. 

In  the  face  of  the  most  bitter  opposition,  Worcester's  Dictionary  has  won  Its  way  solely  upon  ita  merit, 

'>til  it  is  now  recognized  as  "  by  fak  tab  best  aothobitt  xa  to  the  present  usk  of  the  knglmh 

"   It  has  compelled  its  rival  to  make  several  revisions.  In  the  battle  of  Dictionaries  it  has  won : 

XHK  KIBI<I»  OK  8TA1<«DA«.D  I^IXEITATIJRE. 

J:!.very  edition  of  Longfellow,  Holmes,  Bryant,  Lowell,  Whittler,  Hawthorne,  Cooper,  Irving,  and  other 
eminent  Americaa  authors,  follows  Worcester.  "  It  presents  the  usage  of  all  great  English  writers  of  the 
country."  XHK  FIKI«I>  OK  CUHRK^JX  I^IXKHLAXURlH. 

Many  publishing  houses,  which  for  a  time  adopted  its  rival,  have  no^V  gone  over  to  Worcester.  The 
same  is  true  of  the  leading  magazines  and  newspapers.  The  Harper**  Slacraxlne,  Weekly,  Kew 
Tork  Tribnne,  Serald,  Times,  World,  PoAt.  Snn,  Independent^  Nation ;  the  Boston 
AdTertiser,  Transcript,  Herald,  Globe )  Philadelphia  liediper,  and  other  leading  papers 
all  over  the  country,  now  use  the  word-forms  presented  by  Worcester. 

XHK.KIKI^D  OK  OR.AXOHLY. 

Worcester's 
the  statidard 
'ergymen  and  lawyers  use  Worcester  as  authority  on  pronunciation 

XHH  KIEI<I>  OK  HIGHKR  KOUCAXIOPT. 

That  Worcester  is  preferred  among  scholars  is  evident  firpm  the  following  tcstlxnoniale  ftom  the 
jading  colleges: 

Dcom  President  €bas,  W,  Eliot,  oj  Harvard  College,  October  3, 1887.—"  I  have  always  referred  to 

ii  is  work  &  the  standard," 

From  President  McCosb,  of  Rinceton  OoUege,  January  21, 1887.— "I  am  amazed  at  the  amount  of 
s-uowledge  in  this  large  volume,  which  every  scholar  should  possess.  Worcester's  Dictionary,  so  well  known, 
needs  no  commendation  from  me." 

From  President  Fair  child,  of  Oberlin  College,  February  24,  lSST.—"Ihave  never  felt  fare  that  1  had 
'he  best  light. on  any.  doublful  point  until  I  ?iad  consulted  this  avihoriiy.  Our  instnictoi's  in  Ei^lish,  in  the  oollege, 
fwe  in  general  impressed  the  same  idea  upon  tfieir  pupils." 

REASONS  FOR  BUYING' WORCESTER'S  UNABRIDGED  DICTIONARY. 

1 ,  -Because  it  is  the  most  complete  Quarto  Dictionary  of  the  English  Language. 
2, — Because  it  gives  the  correct  usage  in  pronunciation.  • 
3. — Because  it  gives  the  correct  usage  in  spelling  : 

(a).     The  works  of  our  standard  authors  follow  Worcester. 

(b).    The  leading  magazines  and  daily  papers  follpw  Worcester. 
e,. — Because  its  definitions  are  complete,  concise,  and  accurate. 
5. — Because  it  contains  a  Biographical  Dictionary  of  over  12,000  names^ 
6, — Because  it  contains  a  Pronouncing  Gazetter  of  the  World,  noting  and  locating 

over  20,000  places. 
7.— Because  it  contains  a  table  of  Synonymes  of  over  5000  words. 
8. — Because  it  is  Ihe  cheapest  Unabridged  Dictionary  made. 


Dictionary  presents  the  accepted  usage  of  our  best  public  speakers,  and  has  been  regarded 
by  our  leading  orators,— Everett,  Sumner,  Phillips.  Garfield,  Hill" 


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